Red Bull cares how title is won - Horner

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner says it is important to his team that Max Verstappen wins the championship in a pearly and wipe manner at this weekend’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

Verstappen was handed two separate time penalties for incidents involving Lewis Hamilton in Saudi Arabia on Sunday. However, Verstappen still finished second to his title rival, ensuring they go into the decider level on points. Verstappen is superiority in the tiebreaker with increasingly race victories, which ways he will be world champion if both drivers retire. But, when asked if he cares how Verstappen wins the title, Horner replied: “Yes, of undertow we do.

“You want to win it on the track, not in the stewards’ room, not in the gravel trap. It’s been a tough fight all through the year. There’s been some fantastic racing between these two drivers and I hope that it’s a pearly and wipe race in Abu Dhabi.”

Horner moreover says the mindset from Red Bull is simply that it has to write-up Hamilton in a straight shootout, and takes heart from the performance level Verstappen showed in Saudi Arabia having expected Mercedes to have a worthier advantage.

“I think it’s winner takes all, isn’t it? Whoever finishes superiority is the world champion. Let’s see. We’ve got one shot at it. We’ve got to try and write-up Lewis one increasingly time this year. The performance is with them at the moment; they’ve won three races on the vellicate and they’re going to be very competitive in Abu Dhabi, I think, with the new layout.

“We expected them to have a worthier wholesomeness on us (in Jeddah) and we’ve fought hard, we’ve attacked the grand prix. I think Max has been outstanding virtually here all weekend.”

Despite Verstappen’s penalties, Horner believes Hamilton was lucky to come yonder with a victory in the last race, and says it gives the team widow motivation to try and take the title in the final round having not been in with a shot since 2013.

“We’re a team that goes for it. We’re going to Abu Dhabi equal on points but leading by virtue of the number of wins. Who would have thought at the whence of the year? If you had given us this endangerment of one shot to win this championship in Abu Dhabi at the last race without 21 races of intense wrestle with Mercedes, I think we’d have all as a team veritably bitten your arm off for that.

“I think you guys probably would have as well based on the dominance that we’ve seen in the last seven years. It’s the first time since we were last there in 2012 and 2010 with Sebastian that rival teams have gone into the final race fighting for the drivers’ world championship.

“There will be no problem in raising morale going into this final weekend. We’ve unquestionably come out of it with a second place. We managed to get ourselves into a lead, lead a large percentage of the race once then but Lady Luck is shining on Lewis at the moment. (Esteban) Ocon crush over his front wing at the start, he hung on there, he crush up the when of Max. He’s ridden his luck.”