19/03/2024
NEWS STORY
The woman who has accused Christian Horner of inappropriate behaviour is understood to have now lodged a complaint with the FIA.
Her complaint to Red Bull was dismissed following an investigation by an independent Kings Counsel, but in the days that followed as various parties, including F1, the FIA, Ford, Honda and rival team bosses, expressed unease at the lack of transparency, the woman was suspended from her job with the Austrian team.
As the saga rumbled on, taking on numerous further twists and drawing more and more people in to the mess, the woman took her complaint to the sport's governing body.
According to the BBC, there have been two complaints made by the woman to the FIA's ethics and compliance hotline, the first, on 2 February, referring to Horner's behaviour towards a her, and a second on 6 March warning that unless the matter was investigated a whistle-blower would inform the media.
"All Enquiries and complaints are received and managed by the compliance officer, and the ethics committee where appropriate," said the FIA in a statement.
"Both bodies operate autonomously, guaranteeing strict confidentiality throughout the process.
"As a consequence, and in general, we are unable to confirm the receipt of any specific complaint and it is unlikely that we will be able to provide further comment on the complaints that we may receive from any parties."
As Red Bull team boss, Horner is subject to the FIA's International Sporting Code, and Article 12.2.1.c which states that: "Any fraudulent conduct or any act prejudicial to the interests of any competition or to the interests of motor sport generally."
Furthermore, Article 12.2.1.f, will be seen as being appropriate in this case as it covers: "Any words, deeds or writings that have caused moral injury or loss to the FIA, its bodies, its members or its executive officers, and more generally on the interest of motor sport and on the values defended by the FIA".
Despite Horner's presence at the opening two races, this is clearly not going to go away, and amidst talk that the root cause of the matter is a power play, with the likes of Adrian Newey, Max Verstappen and Helmut Marko in the same camp, it is beginning to look ominous for the Briton.