Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Horner (LEFT) has dismissed as "ridiculous" the allegation by former grand prix driver and Scuderia Toro Ross team principal Gerhard Berger that Mark Webber tried intentionally tried to take out rival drivers in his crash during last Sunday's Korean Grand Prix.
In an interview with Austria's Servus TV on Tuesday, Berger suggested that Webber "could have hit the brakes" after crashing out of second place during the race at Yeongam. "It's very obvious – you can see his wheels are not locked up," said Berger of the incident, in which Webber collected the Mercedes of Nico Rosberg, but – according to Berger – he "would have preferred" to eliminate title rivals Fernando Alonso or Lewis Hamilton, who were also running behind him.
Rosberg has also now criticized Webber via his Twitter feed, saying the Australian was "crazy" not to hit the brakes. Horner, however, reckons the criticism absurd.
"As with every incident in Formula 1, opinions will always be made without all the facts," Horner told Britain's The Telegraph newspaper when queried about Berger's comments. "Just to be absolutely clear – Mark's intention was not to take out another driver after his crash and it's ridiculous to suggest otherwise."
Horner admitted that Webber's RB6 was "badly damaged" by its initial contact with the wall, but reckoned his driver's efforts to try to keep going afterward was a "natural and immediate instinct" to get back into the race.
"It's absurd to suggest that Mark would ever deliberately take out another driver," added Horner. “Mark accepted immediate blame for this incident, which in itself deserves credit."