“If I think somebody is being an arse, I’ll tell them I think they’re being an arse.” These are the immortal words of an easily triggered arse. And that easily triggered arse is one Kristian Karen Horner, Red Bull team principal. Without any sense of irony, Horner revealed to the media that he is a “straight talker”. But it appears he is the one who needs a good talking to. Perhaps Horner should use the same mirror, which with very little obstruction and without question, reflects his vainglory. The Karen of the F1 world was triggered a few weeks ago by Damon Hill who dared venture an opinion about Max Verstappen. Hill suggested that Verstappen could deliberately cause a collision with his 2021 rival Lewis Hamilton in order to secure the driver’s title.

Hill’s premonition nearly came true at the Brazilian Grand Prix when Verstappen all but certainly tried to drive into Lewis Hamilton as the pair battled for the lead. Verstappen went unpunished, and Hamilton romped to a victory that at one stage looked to have been all but lost. Of Verstappen’s attempt to irrationally thwart  Hamilton, Hill said the Red Bull driver went “over the limit”. Hill praised Hamilton’s Brazil victory as “one of the best drives I’ve ever seen in F1”.

Triggered by Damon Hill, a driver who has experienced over the limit driving during his Grand Prix career, Kristian Karen Horner, decided enough was enough as he spoke to a British publication.

Kristian Karen Horner:

“We’ve got a British driver going for a record-breaking World Championship. And Damon obviously has never been a fan of Max. That’s just the way things are reported. And, you know, sometimes impartiality does get lost.”

“He’s [Damon Hill] not a big fan of Max from what I can see. It’s something that’s been noticeable over the last couple of years. But everybody has a right to an opinion”.

“You know, it’s a free world. And, as I said to Damon, I’m the type of person that, if I don’t agree with your opinion, I’m not just going to roll over.”

“If I think somebody is being an arse, I’ll tell them I think they’re being an arse.”

Certainly wisdom and self-reflection, quite literally, in this case, is an unknown quantity and in short supply for Horner. Horner should take note from Verstappen, who once said over the team radio during the Spanish GP that Red Bull should focus on their race and not on Mercedes or Lewis Hamilton.

Wise words indeed.