Horner 'exploited' following "Tsunoda'd" social tsunami

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner has accused social media of "exploiting" his comments after criticism of Yuki Tsunoda in the aftermath of qualifying for the Mexico City Grand Prix.

AlphaTauri driver Tsunoda found himself in the firing line for appearing to disrupt the final flying laps of both Sergio Perez and Max Verstappen late in the session.

It resulted in the Red Bull duo lining up third and fourth on the grid, and led to Horner remarking his team had been "Tsunoda'd" and at a loss to understand "why he was just cruising around at that part of the circuit".

Horner's comments led to a social media backlash against Tsunoda, although there were also many who felt the Red Bull boss was wrong to chastise the Japanese so publicly.

Following the race, asked whether he had revised his opinion on Tsunoda, Horner toned down his remarks and suggested the AlphaTauiri pit wall let down their driver.

"Having had a chance to consider it, in fairness to Yuki perhaps he could have been helped a bit more, with more information," said Horner.

"The outcome was unfortunate, particularly as he was only there to give a tow for his team-mate. But it is what it is. In the end, it worked out okay, because starting on the second row worked out fine for us."

Referencing the backlash that followed his "Tsunoda'd" comment and the way Red Bull treats its young drivers, in general, Horner stood firm when asked if he regretted going public with his criticism, and instead blamed social media.

"The problem, if you look into the context of what is said, unfortunately with these things, social media has a habit of picking on certain lines and then exploiting them," added Horner.

"It's important you can still...it would be a pretty boring world if you're unable to comment on the performance of a driver."

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