Mercedes chief Toto Wolff has commented on the reception Christian Horner and Max Verstappen received at the launch event for the 2025 F1 season.
F1 75, an event to mark the 75th anniversary of the sport, took place in London last Tuesday, with the spectacle watched by almost 7.5 million viewers across platforms.
It was generally received well, although one controversial moment came when Red Bull Team Principal Horner and world champion Verstappen were booed by the crowd inside the 02, which was mainly made up of English supporters.
Reports circulated that a furious Verstappen is planning to boycott the event if it is hosted in London again, while his father Jos hit out at fans.
And Wolff, who has a turbulent relationship with Horner after clashing with the Brit on several occasions over the years, has now weighed in on the incident.
‘I wasn’t booing,’ he told Sky Sports. ‘There were 15,000 people doing that – it wasn’t necessary that I did that!
Toto Wolff has spoken on the booing of rivals Max Verstappen and Christian Horner at F1 75
Last week’s launch event for the 2025 season was marred by the crowd’s reaction to Horner
Verstappen also received a frosty reception and has threatened to boycott the event in future
‘We shouldn’t talk an event down that was mega just because one single individual, rightly or wrongly, was booed when he spoke.
‘It was a great event, the spectators were great, the presentation of the cars was good and it sets a new format for years to come.
‘That is the positive we need to take from that.’
Verstappen’s father Jos had called the crowd’s actions ‘unacceptable’, before he added: ‘Max doesn’t feel like being booed in front of 25,000 people.
‘He also says: “If this is in England again next year, they certainly won’t see me there” and I completely agree with him.’
Following the event, the FIA, motorsport’s governing body, had condemned the crowd.
‘Great rivalries throughout the history of motorsport have contributed to making it such an exciting experience for fans,’ they said in a statement on Saturday.
‘But what underpins sport at all levels is a culture of respect. As such, it was disappointing to hear the crowd’s tribalist reaction to FIA Formula One World Champion Max Verstappen and his Red Bull Team Principal and CEO Christian Horner, at the F1 launch in London.
World champion Verstappen was reportedly left furious by the reaction he received at the 02
The outspoken Jos Verstappen hit out at the crowd, labelling their actions as ‘unacceptable’
‘Max and Christian have both contributed greatly to the sport we love. In the season ahead we should not lose sight of that.
‘As part of the FIA’s commitment to protect the integrity of the sport, we are leading a coalition tackling online abuse in sport under the banner of our United Against Online Abuse campaign.
‘We stand with all of our competitors, officials, volunteers, and fans to unite against this growing threat. We urge the sporting community to consider the impact of their actions both online and offline.’
However, The Times reported that the FIA’s statement created further divisions within the sport.
This comes after members of the paddock were left frustrated by the lack of FIA intervention when Horner was investigated and then cleared twice over allegations of controlling behaviour towards a female employee at the start of last season. Horner repeatedly denied the allegations throughout.
Meanwhile, despite his success Verstappen has been somewhat of a pantomime villain after clashing with the likes of Lando Norris and George Russell during the 2024 season.
Verstappen and Horner are yet to publicly comment on the booing furore, although they are expected to do so at pre-season testing in Bahrain this week.
Meanwhile, the future of the F1 launch event is uncertain, with it unclear as of yet over whether it will return next year, although there is interest from several countries to step in as hosts, including Saudi Arabia.
