Christian Horner has refuted suggestions of political in-fighting within Red Bull, insisting the F1 team is “incredibly strong”.

Ahead of last week’s season-opener in Bahrain the Red Bull team principal was cleared of wrongdoing after accusations of inappropriate behaviour were made against him by a♉ female colleague, who has since been suspended.

24 hours later Horner faced fresh scrutiny after messages purporting to involv🌌e him were leaked to high-profile F1 figures and media.

The 50-year-old ins🗹isted it was time to “draw a line” under the matter on Thursday, ahead of ♋this weekend’s grand prix in Jeddah.

Doubts then emerged over the future of Red Bull motorsport Helmut Marko on Friday night when it was revealed he f𓂃aced an investigation relating to various leaks to the media in a fresh twistꦓ to the saga.

But ahead of Saturday’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, the 80-year-old Austrian confirmed he will stay at th♑e team after holding crunch talks with Red Bull C🔯EO Oliver Mintzlaff.

Horner was quizzed on reports of a political feud within the camp following the Jeddah race, where Red Bull claimed a second consecutive 1-2 led by 168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史:Max Verstappen.

Asked if♔ there is a battle going on for who controls ಌthe race team, Horner told Sky: “No. Obviously a lot is made of this stuff but we are one team.

“Nobody is bigger than the team. This team comprises across the different entities of over 1,400 people. Everybody has a role to play. That’s from the very bottom to the very top, and without them performing, you don’t achieve performances lik꧑e this.

“Unfortunately, there’⛄s been a lot of speculation this weekend but once again our focus is very much on track.”

On Marko’s situation and the strong backing he re♕ceived from Verstappen, Horner said: “Firstly, Helmut is a consultant to Red Bull GmbH, so whatever the discussion was w🎉as between them and not the team.

“Max is an important member of our team, he’s a valued member of our team, he’s a wonderful driver but everybody has a role to play in this team. We are a team and no single individual 🍷is bigger than the team. Thܫat’s the only way you achieve these kind of results.

“This is an incredibly strong team thatꦅ has strength and depth, t🦩hat is achieving these kind of results.”

Verstappen’s father, Jos, spoke out against Horner following reports of a rift between the pair in Bahrain, warning that the controversy risked “driving 🀅people aꦫpart”.

Asked if he has the support of his star driver, Horner responded: “Obviously there’s [been] rumblings. I’m aware of what’s been said but Max is an important part of this team. He’🧔s our driver and he’s doing a gre🧜at job.

“As team principal𓆏 and CEO, I’m responsible for the running of thi🌼s team. So everyone has to do their part. Max is doing his part. Everybody else is doing their part.”

Horner was then pressed further on whether he has to fix his relationship wi🐷th Verstappen’s father.

“Look, I think speculation is obviously rife but the m🐟ost important tꦦhing is the team and focusing on on-track performances,” he said.

“We all havꦚe a vested interest in ach﷽ieving performances like today.”

Horner added: “There’s nine other teams trying to do what we’re ♉doing. It’s not that easy.

“You only do that by having a spirit, a ꧟culture and a determination throu𒆙ghout the entire company.”