Both Christian Horner and Max Verstappen were in a punchy mood after a triumphant Brazilian Grand Prix, with both men from the Red Bull camp taking a moment to point out their successes to those who doubted them.

While Max Verstappen took aim at the British press in the FIA post-race press conference, Red Bull boss Christian Horner teased Damon Hill for saying “something nice” about Verstappen after several strong criticisms.

Horner, Hill praise dominant Max Verstappen Brazil GP drive

Damon Hill hasn’t gone easy on Max Verstappen lately. Speaking to the Sky F1 podcast between the Mexican and Brazilian rounds of the 2024 Formula 1 championship, the 1996 World Champion offered scathing criticisms about the Dutch racer’s fairness.

“The problem that Max has is he simply refuses to concede any turf at all, to anyone, in an overtake,” Hill stated.

After analyzing the on-track maneuvers that earned Verstappen a whopping 20 seconds of penalties in Mexico, Hill concluded, “It is possible to race fairly and that is something I’m not sure that Max is capable of.

“It’s not in his repertoire. It’s not in his philosophy. His philosophy is that ‘you’re not coming past.’”

Verstappen himself responded to Hill’s critiques during the pre-race press conference in Brazil, saying, “I don’t listen to those individuals. I just do my own thing.

“I’m a three-time world champion. I think I know what I’m doing.

“Honestly like, I have my opinions. I don’t need to share them.”

But as everyone in motorsport knows, the best way to silence your critics is to put on a dominant performance – and that’s just what Max Verstappen did in Brazil.

A challenging qualifying session on Sunday morning paired with a five-place grid penalty saw Verstappen start the Brazilian Grand Prix from 17th position on the grid. A win seemed ambitious — but win is just what Verstappen did.

Speaking to Sky Sports after the race, Christian Horner was enthusiastic about Verstappen’s performance, saying, “It was a masterclass today, and I think in those conditions, the driver’s skill really comes to a fore, and he was in a league of his own.

“I think as team we got all the calls right, and the car had great pace.”

Horner acknowledged that the P17 start contributed to the feeling that “everything had gone against us,” but that the reigning champion’s “outstanding drive” helped the team turn the day around — especially after passing a whopping six cars on the very first lap.

“It was an incredible, incredible performance from him — one of his very best,” Horner gushed.

Even further, Damon Hill offered a few words of praise as well, saying, “We sort of conjected at the beginning that maybe this was a day when he could show everyone his brilliance, and he’s absolutely done that today.”

Horner didn’t waste a moment, hopping in to tease Hill by saying, “I think we’re gonna have to get that on record that Damon said something nice!”

Verstappen had a similar moment in the post-race press conference; as the conference came to a close, he asked where all the British press had gone — a dig at what he has perceived to be ongoing bias.

But over on Sky Sports, Horner was proud.

“It’s a big day for the drivers’ championship today, and I never expected to win that,” he said.

“I thought if we could get somewhere near the podium, it would be an amazing result.

“For him to have gone out there and won that race, it was an outstanding drive. He was patient, he attacked when he needed to, and his restart – he came from so far back. Truly an outstanding drive today.”

Horner also took a moment to praise Verstappen overall.

“I think in the wet and the dry, he’s the best in the world at the moment,” he said.

“It’s been a while, but I think that the whole team have really kept their heads and worked incredibly hard.

“We fought ourselves back into a winning position, and that’s a testament to the effort that goes on behind the scenes back in Milton Keynes, that nobody ever gives up. We’ve demonstrated that today.”