Max Verstappen will boycott future events in England after F175 embarrassment, says father Jos

Red Bull Racing and Max Verstappen received hostile reception from the British crowd at the F175 event on February 18 at the O2 Arena in London. The reigning champion and team boss Christian Horner were met with boos from the audience, prompting a reaction from Jos Verstappen.

The O2 arena hosted the F175 livery launch event, where all 10 teams unveiled the paint schemes of their 2025 challengers in front of an 18,000 crowd. While most teams received a warm reception from the audience, the FIA and Red Bull received boos from the crowd, who displayed their displeasure.

Christian Horner took center stage for the RB21 livery launch but was met with jeers as he began his monologue. Later, when Red Bull teammates Max Verstappen and Liam Lawson joined him on stage, the Dutchman also received a mix of cheers and boos from the hostile crowd.

Jos Verstappen has expressed his disappointment with how the British crowd greeted his son. He stated that the 4x champion would avoid attending a similar event if it were held in front of a British audience.

"In itself I thought it was a reasonable set-up, only I thought it was shameful what happened there with Red Bull Racing," Verstappen Sr reacted to RaceXpress. (via GPBlog)

"That Christian Horner was booed like that, and Max was booed too. Look, then you do it for Formula 1, you are there to promote the sport and then you are booed by the public. I don't think that's acceptable. I get it, because Max is the only one who fires up those Englishmen and says exactly how things are. But I don't think this is acceptable, it's really a disappointment what happened there," he continued.

The 52-year-old former F1 driver hinted that his son wouldn't be attending such events in England in the future.

"No, Max has no appetite for that, to be booed like that in front of 25,000 people. He also says: 'If this is in England next year, they definitely won't see me'." he mentioned.

Max Verstappen has a long history of rivalry with British favorites Lewis Hamilton, Lando Norris, and, George Russell, which likely contributed to the jeers from the crowd.

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FIA concerned about fan reaction to Max Verstappen and Christian Horner

Although the F175 live event was a success, the FIA is concerned about the boos directed at its competitors. While the governing body itself was met with jeers upon being mentioned, their primary concern lies with the hostility aimed at Max Verstappen and Christian Horner.

According to a recent report published by Thomas Maher of Planet F1, FIA hopes to tackle the issue:

"Sources in the governing body have suggested that the booing of the governing body is merely a byproduct of its unenviable position of being the regulator and enforcer, and that its greater concern is on the booing focused at competitors within the sport." Maher wrote.

Verstappen and Liam Lawson made a low-key appearance at the F175 event, opting not to address the crowd from the stage. The Red Bull duo will begin their season with pre-season testing from February 26-28, followed by the season-opening Australian GP on March 16-18.