Following weeks of speculation and media interest surrounding the state of internal affairs at Red Bull, Verstappen Snr went public with his frustrations on Sunday after the Bahrain Grand Prix.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, he revealed details of a ‘blazing row’ with Horner, before adding: “There is tension here while he remains in position.
“The team is in danger of being torn apart. It can’t go on the way it is. It will explode. He is playing the victim, when he is the one causing the problems.”
The drama generated by Jos’ public comments against Horner served to overshadow his son’s on-track achievements in Bahrain. The reigning world champion converted his pole position into a lights-to-flag victory at the Sakhir International Circuit.
Offering his thoughts on the situation, Hamilton said: “I don’t know the details of it. So I don’t know what he’s basing these foundations off. But at the end of the day, he’s not a part of the team, he’s a parent. And so that’s just an opinion, but it’s definitely not helpful.”
The Mercedes driver also touched on the wider impact of parent-driver relations in the F1 paddock. “I think it is a very thin line to walk,” he added. “I think it’s also dependent on your relationship with your parent.
“You meet some people who have a great relationship with their parents, and they’ve been amazing parents, and then you’ve got people that have had bad relationships. And this is not necessarily parents that have been good to them.
“So I don’t know about his [Verstappen’s] relationships. Obviously, you hear things here and there. But Max is a grown man, and he’s a champion, and I’m sure he can make his own decisions.
“But I think in our world, as drivers, it’s very, very easy to be misled by people whispering in your ear, and perhaps not guiding you always the right way. I’m not saying it’s the case there, because they’re doing great.
“But I know in sports, other athletes that I’ve spoken to that I see, whether it’s in tennis, and I’ve experienced it when you sometimes don’t have the right guidance around you, it leads to you either making the wrong decisions or not being able to perhaps be the best at what you do.
“But that’s obviously clearly not the case there, he’s performing well. So it is very difficult because you want your parent to be your parent, and have a good relationship. But when business is involved, it makes it really difficult.”