Christian Horner hit by new claims of sexual misconduct as fresh allegations emerge that female Red Bull employee ‘was sent sexual messages – and that Geri Halliwell’s husband offered her £650k hush money’
- Christian Horner has been accused of ‘inappropriate behaviour’ by a colleague
- The 50-year-old Red Bull chief has strongly denied the allegations against him
- A new bombshell report in the Netherlands has shed new light on the claims
An explosive new report today claims that Christian Horner has offered to pay a Red Bull employee who allegedly accused him of sexual misconduct in the form of sexual messages.
Geri Halliwell’s husband Horner – CEO and team principal of Red Bull’s Formula 1 team – is the subject of an internal investigation into an allegation of ‘inappropriate behaviour’ made against him by a female employee, with the 50-year-old fighting to protect his father to rescue. function.
He has not yet responded to the new claims but has previously denied all allegations and last week took his case to a QC appointed as an internal investigator by the reigning world champion team.
But in a new bombshell report from the Dutch outlet The TelegraphAccording to the employee, the allegations of “inappropriate conduct” regarding Horner reportedly included engaging in “sexual misconduct.”
The report claims the Red Bull chief – who is married to former Spice Girl Geri – sent ‘sexually suggestive messages’ to the employee, with evidence in the form of WhatsApp messages. The Telegraph say they have seen the messages.
Christian Horner has reportedly offered to pay an employee who accused him of sexual misconduct
Horner – who is married to former Spice Girl Geri Halliwell – is fighting to save his career after a colleague accused him of ‘inappropriate behaviour’
De Telegraaf claims that Horner sent ‘sexually suggestive messages’ to the employee
This goes well beyond the initial allegations, which suggested this was down to Horner’s ‘controlling behaviour’.
It is believed that other teams and individuals in the F1 world are aware of these claims, with the QC, which is overseeing the investigation, also aware of the reports in question.
The Telegraph claims that when Horner was informed of their intention to publish the allegations, Horner’s lawyers offered £650,000 to the female employee in an attempt to extract hush money.
Red Bull chiefs are said to be aware of the nature of the allegations against Horner, although he currently retains the support of Red Bull majority shareholder Chalerm Yoovidhya.
However, the report also states that many insiders, including possibly Horner, realize that those at Red Bull headquarters – who say the matter is being taken ‘extremely seriously’ – would be open to his departure.
F1 owner Liberty Media and Red Bull’s major US sponsors are also reportedly keeping a close eye on the issue and how it is handled.
Mail Sport has attempted to reach Horner’s representatives for comment. The Telegraph report Horner ‘would not respond to questions’ about the latest allegations.
When asked on Thursday about the previous allegations at the launch of Red Bull’s new car for the 2024 season, the 50-year-old claimed he had not considered giving up his role and insisted he would still be involved this season would remain at his post. Opening Grand Prix of Bahrain on March 2.
‘No. It’s business as usual,” he said Sky Sports News. ‘Obviously I completely deny any allegations that have been made against me, but of course I will work on that process, which I hope will be completed in the near future.
‘I cannot say what that process consists of. I clearly have confidence in the process and working with the process and absolutely deny any allegations that are being made.
“I’ll just continue to work within that process until it’s done.”
Horner also denied reports of tensions with three-time world champion Verstappen over the allegations.
Speaking at the launch of Red Bull’s car for the new season, Horner said he wasn’t going anywhere
Under Horner’s leadership, Red Bull’s Max Verstappen has won three consecutive world titles
“No, not at all (there is no friction),” the Red Bull team boss and CEO added. ‘A few days ago I was at Silverstone with Jos and Max.
‘Max is very focused on his work. He has been very supportive of me and I am looking forward to the coming season with him.
“There will always be speculation, but we are together as one team, that’s how we always have been and that’s how we still are.
“The support from shareholders has been phenomenal and without it we wouldn’t be here. So no, that’s not right.’