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Christian Horner, the head of Red Bull Racing, after the victorious finish at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, said that the current success of Max Verstappen will create the right atmosphere for the entire winter off-season..
Question: Congratulations on your victory! Surely I wish there were more weekends of this type in the year!
Christian Horner: You know, of all static racing, this is the best! It hasn’t been like this in a long time! (Laughs) I think the last time we won here was in 2013. Since then, only Mercedes riders have won this track. But now Max drove all weekend without problems, and no matter what the rivals did, he always had an answer.
Question: Already yesterday you felt an atmosphere of self-confidence in your team boxes. How important was it to win before the team left for winter break?
Christian Horner: You always try to win the last race of the season, because it sets the mood for the whole winter. Every member of the team, everyone who works at the Milton Keynes base, has put in a tremendous effort this year, although this is not seen on the track, it all happens behind the scenes. Today’s victory shows that they did not work in vain.
Question Can you explain how you managed to achieve superiority over Mercedes in this race?
Christian Horner: I wish I knew the answer to this question. In the last few races, we gradually narrowed the gap, and last weekend Max was very upset because he retired, because he already had a very fast car that weekend. But in the season finale, he recovered, although it was not easy. It performed incredibly well! Yesterday Max did a great lap in qualifying and today he completely controlled the course of the race.
Q: Can you promise to keep this form for the first race next season? In addition, Honda minders will develop a new engine …
Christian Horner: This is what we will try to do: maintain the momentum. Mercedes has worked exceptionally well this year, they don’t stand still, they keep attacking. Our car for next season will largely inherit the elements of the RB16, so we kept working hard, constantly learning, this allowed us to reach a good level.
If we can stick with it early next year … However, it is not far off, and today’s success has given everyone confidence in its capabilities.
Question: What can you say about the future destiny of Alexander Elbon? A difficult season is behind him, but today he did everything he had to do: will he continue to be Max Verstappen’s teammate in 2021?
Christian Horner: Alex did a great job today; To add up, it may have been his best weekend of the season. He had a good race, at the end of the distance he started putting pressure on Lewis Hamilton, and in the end we got enough information to be analyzed, after which we will decide how we will act.
Question: When can we expect a decision on the composition of the team?
Christian Horner: In the next few days.
Question: You promised too. that before the end of the year will decide which engines the team will use in 2022, is there anything new?
Christian Horner: Constructive discussions are ongoing with the participation of Honda and the FIA, and I believe that we are now nearing completion. Of course, the FIA consults with other teams, we are talking about a possible moratorium on the review of power plants …
Q: Do you think that the changes in the aerodynamic regulations, which will come into force next year, will be in the hands of Red Bull Racing, because, when developing the chassis, you are betting on a high rake (the angle of the caster of the chassis to the track surface)?
Christian Horner: It is difficult to say to what extent changes in regulations will affect the balance of power, but there will be some influence, because the bottom is a very sensitive part of the car. On Friday at this track we tested some new components, but we will see how things go next year.
