The FIA Awards Gala provided many memorable moments, with drivers winning championship trophies from their respective series and receiving separate awards.
Red Bull completed the F1 double in 2022, with Max Verstappen winning the drivers’ championship at the Japanese Grand Prix, before the team secured its first constructors’ title since 2013 in Austin.
FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem and Red Bull team principal Christian Horner shared an awkward moment on stage during the Constructors’ Trophy presentation, as the 61-year-old bizarrely decided that it would be an appropriate time to clarify the regulations that played a part in a controversial race earlier this year at Suzuka.
Obviously chasing some time away from awkwardness and the cameras, Horner was filmed with his drivers Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez behind the scenes keeping an eye on the events unfolding at the Qatar 2022 World Cup.
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The trio were caught watching the quarter-final penalty shootout between Brazil and Croatia on a smartphone, presumably when they were supposed to be doing something else related to the evening’s proceedings.
It was the Croatians who celebrated the end of the shootout, as goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic led his country to a second consecutive victory on penalties, ousting World Cup favorites Brazil.
Although no member of the Red Bull team has ties to either nation, the chance to see a small country like Croatia qualify for their second consecutive World Cup semi-final, at the expense of Neymar Jr and Brazil, was obviously one that Horner, Verstappen and Perez couldn’t refuse, presentation night or not.
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The video that has emerged on Instagram may be a positive sign for Red Bull fans as it is the first time the trio have been seen smiling together since the team order controversy at the Brazilian Grand Prix.
Rumors suggest Verstappen’s relationship with Perez is at breaking point, but if these images are anything to go by, the pair appear to have buried the hatchet following their explosive end to the 2022 season.
With Daniel Ricciardo returning to Red Bull as the third driver, Perez will be hoping to stay in Red Bull’s good book as Ricciardo will be eager to take his place should the team make a change.
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