Christian Horner has slapped down Red Bull junior driver Dan Ticktum for the comments he made earlier this week about Mick Schumacher.
Ticktum had been the runaway leader in this year’s FIA European F3 series right up until his rival put in a stunning run of five consecutive wins at the Nurburgring and the Red Bull Ring.
It’s vaulted Schumacher into a commanding lead of the drivers championship, squelching any hopes that Ticktum might have had for being considered for the vacant F1 seat at Toro Rosso.
- Schumacher ignores poor loser Ticktum, thanks Ferrari
Even if he had won the title, Ticktum wouldn’t have quite enough superlicence points to be eligible for a full time seat in 2019. Without it, he’s definitely out of the running.
“Compared to the top two, no-one on this grid had a chance,” he complained after the latest F3 race weekend. “Interesting is how I would describe their pace.”
Ticktum added that he felt “robbed of a championship.” He later deleted his comments from Instagram and instead commented that “I’m not a sore loser. Neither am I salty.”
But Red Bull boss Horner wasn’t happy with Ticktum’s previous insinuation that Schumacher and his PREMA team mates were receiving preferential treatment in some way.
“He is a character,” Horner told Sky Sports in Sochi on Friday. “He sometimes engages mouth before brain.
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