Red Bull team boss Christian Horner has tipped Formula 1 for a four-way title fight when the 2020 season finally begins.
Before the coronavirus pandemic, which has led to the official cancellation/postponement of the first eight races, the sport was building up to what was expected to be a tight duel between Mercedes and Red Bull with Ferrari as the unknown.
Of course, leading the charge for the Milton Keynes-based squad will be Max Verstappen and his boss highlighted how important he has become for the team and the sport.
“I think Max is at the moment the most spectacular driver, the one that can get fans excited,” he said via Crash.net.
“For us, he is an incredible asset so I believe it was really important for us to renew his contract.
“Max and [Charles] Leclerc are the future of F1. With [Lewis] Hamilton still here I expect to see incredible fights this season between the three of them.”
Despite the generational battle that is shaping up, the Red Bull boss is also keen not to rule out his former driver Sebastian Vettel despite a tough 2019.
“It seemed to me that Seb was struggling against Charles sometimes last year and he felt in discomfort,” Horner claimed.
“But he is a great driver with a lot of personality and I believe this winter he recharged himself. If the car will respond like he wants he will be competitive again.
“Only a mad person wouldn’t consider a four-time champion in the fight for the title.”
For the time being, however, all F1 can do is wait until the Covid-19 outbreak ends and Horner has supported the work done since Australia to help the sport overcome the situation.
“Everyone in F1 has been working hard this week as a collective to do the right thing given the unprecedented circumstances all of us are currently facing,” he wrote on Instagram.
“Numerous measures have been put in place to make sure that when we return to racing, we do so safely for our fans, the F1 workforce and the communities we visit.
“We therefore fully support the measures that the FIA and F1 have put in place, including the postponement of the introduction of the 2021 Technical regs until 2022.
“Currently at Red Bull, we are focusing on making sure we have all the best possible measures in place to ensure the health and wellbeing of our staff and their families,” he added.
“Like all fans, we share the disappointment that we are unable to race and further Grands Prix have been postponed or cancelled, like the Monaco Grand Prix, but this pandemic transcends our sport and change is a necessity given the current global situation.
“Rest assured that once the season does begin, it will be one to remember.”