Bahrain’s Sakhir — Max Verstappen, the three-time defending world champion, won the Formula 1 race on Saturday, easily outpacing the pack by 22 seconds, demonstrating that the continuing crisis surrounding Red Bull had no influence on him.
Verstappen qualified first for the Bahrain Grand Prix and led Red Bull to a dominant one-two finish with teammate Sergio Perez. Verstappen was never truly challenged during the race. Embattled team principal Christian Horner was accompanied by his ex-pop star wife, Geri Halliwell, both prior to the race and during the podium celebration.
Verstappen stated, “Today went even better than expected.” “It was a lot of fun.”
After a fierce battle with his teammate Charles Leclerc, Carlos Sainz Jr. finished third for Ferrari.
Verstappen is on track to replicate his near-perfect 2023 season, in which he won 19 of 22 races, as the longest-running Formula One season begins with 24 races.
Verstappen’s victory in Bahrain was his eighth consecutive victory since last September. Last season, he achieved a Formula One record with ten straight victories.
Horner has been the center of attention for the F1 paddock; Verstappen stated on Saturday that his manager was “probably a little bit distracted.”
“Obviously, it’s not been pleasant, some of the unwanted attention, but the focus is now very much on the cars,” Horner stated. “I have been concentrating a lot on what’s happening.”
On race day, Horner and Halliwell—better known as Ginger Spice from the Spice Girls pop group—came hand in hand, and they rejoiced as Verstappen was awarded his trophy. The FIA President, Mohammed Ben Sulayem, told the Financial Times that the controversy around Horner was “damaging the sport,” which prompted the race.
The club’s parent corporation rejected a complaint on Wednesday over Horner’s alleged misbehavior towards a team member. A file purportedly containing evidence against Horner was emailed to around 200 individuals in the F1 paddock, including Liberty Media, F1, the FIA, the other nine team principals, and numerous media outlets, one day later during practice in Bahrain.
The Associated Press has not confirmed the files’ legitimacy; they originated from a generic email account.
