Christian Horner has praised Sebastian Vettel for not throwing his toys out of the pram during Red Bull’s ongoing crisis.
Following an abysmal Austrian Grand Prix for Red Bull, team principal Horner slated power-unit supplier Renault for their performance – one he described as “unacceptable”.
After suffering an electrical fault on lap two which almost resulted in Vettel grinding to a halt – he got going again but dropped to the back of the pack – Red Bull opted to retire their four-time world champion after 34 laps to save the car.
It was the third time this year Vettel has been forced to retire from a race, as many as incurred in the previous three years combined.
It would have been easy for Vettel to have expressed his anger in the face of such adversity but, according to Horner, the German – who turns 27 tomorrow – has been an example to all within the team.
“He’s been remarkably mature about it, to be honest with you,” said Horner.
“He’s not been shallow in any way, he’s not spat out his dummy or thrown the toys out, and he’s had the majority of the problems this year.
“He recognises he has enjoyed a lot of success with Renault power, and now isn’t the time to be giving them a particularly hard time.
“What we need with Sebastian is a clean weekend – Friday, Saturday, Sunday – where he is able to get the most out of the car and engine package,” added Horner ahead of this weekend’s British Grand Prix at Silverstone.
Although the German trails championship leader Nico Rosberg in the drivers’ standings by 105 points, Horner maintains no one at Red Bull – including Vettel – has thrown in the towel on this season.
“We’re not even halfway yet. There’s still a long way to go, so he’s written off nothing yet,” said Horner.
“We’ve enjoyed a huge amount of success with Renault, we’ve won nearly 50 Grands Prix and eight world championships during the last four years with them.
“So nobody’s giving up on anything. It’s just where they ( Renault) currently are is not right.”
