Toto Wolff has accused Red Bull of withholding information in the Christian Horner sex text scandal and slammed them for a ‘confusing’ communication strategy.

The Mercedes boss also revealed he was open to a move for Red Bull’s legendary chief technical officer Adrian Newey – after news emerged Horner could push him out.

Horner has been mired in a scandal following accusations of ‘inappropriate behaviour’ by a female employee ahead of the 2024 season, though an internal investigation cleared him.

Hundreds of messages allegedly from Horner – some sexual – were spilled to the media and F1 titans, but Red Bull have affirmed he will not be sacked after a shareholder meeting.

In response, Wolff told Osterreich: ‘From the outside, we’re treated to a lot of drama. But for a team like Red Bull, a situation like this isn’t great.

Toto Wolff (pictured) has slammed Red Bull for potentially withholding information about the Christian Horner scandal

Wolff also revealed he was open to a move for Red Bull chief technical officer Adrian Newey

‘Not saying everything only makes it more interesting, leading to more questions, more stories, more speculation.

‘But there is a real story in the background, and it’s the most important one – why did a woman who felt uncomfortable go to HR? Why hasn’t anything talked about this yet?

‘There’s also an information strategy that looks a bit confusing from the outside. Generally, I think the Austrians are professional while in England they try to keep everything small, but that’s no longer possible these days.’

Despite being cleared of allegations by Red Bull, Horner’s future was thrown back into serious jeopardy after what appeared to be intimate WhatsApp exchanges with a female colleague were sent to Formula One’s most influential figures.

The bombshell email contained 79 documents, including hundreds of messages, many of them of a sexual nature.

The anonymous sender copied in leading people in the sport, such as FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem and F1 chief executive Stefano Domenicali, as well as accredited media gathered in Bahrain for the scandal-ridden opening race of the season.

Amidst the scandal, a rift has reportedly developed between Horner and Newey, the designer who has helped Red Bull win 13 titles since 2006. Horner could reportedly look to push him out of the F1 champions.

Horner refused to rule out a move for Newey, saying: ‘Everything is always possible in this crazy carousel. I wouldn’t rule anything out. But we have an excellent team of technicians with whom I feel comfortable, even if that is not reflected in the lap time at the moment.’

Horner has been enveloped in a sex text scandal after a female employee accused him of ‘inappropriate behaviour’ and messages – purportedly from him – were released

Horner (right) is reportedly looking to force Adrian Newey (left) out of Red Bull’s F1 team

That comes after his claim that he would ‘love’ to have Max Verstappen join the Silver Arrows. Sources have told Mail Sport’s Jonathan McEvoy that Verstappen could even leave Red Bull mid-season, given his and his father’s distaste for the outrage enveloping Horner.

Seeing Verstappen and Newey leave would be a monumental blow to Red Bull’s stable excellence, but at least they can probably count one ally sticking by them.

Last week, their future engine supplier from 2026, Ford, appeared to commit their future to the team by sponsoring the team’s F1 Academy programme.

Ford were previously very vocal, stating that they expect ‘high standards of behaviour and integrity,’ before falling silent on the Horner controversy.

Becoming the title sponsor for the Red Bull-backed Academy programme, an all-female racing series designed to support Formula 1, appears to show their commitment to the team.

Helmut Marko (left) played down claims that a rift could drive himself and Horner apart

The team’s future engine supplier, Ford, last week became the title sponsor of the Red Bull-backed F1 Academy programme

And Helmut Marko, Verstappen’s mentor, told De Telegraaf that the situation is more agreeable than reported – despite claims that there was an ‘open war’ between him and Horner.

He said: ‘A lot has become clearer.’

Asked if he can continue to work with Horner, he said: ‘We’ve been doing it for 19 years already, so why not?

‘However, there are still some issues that need to be resolved.’