Former F1 driver criticises team bosses: 'Why do they do that?'

It is the furthest journey the Formula 1 teams make every year: from England or Italy - where most factories are located - all the way to Australia. Meanwhile, the equipment of the ten teams has arrived in Melbourne, where the Australian Grand Prix is scheduled in a week's time. The drivers and team bosses will arrive later this week, arranged in expensive private jets. Christijan Albers doesn't understand why team bosses no longer take a 'regular' scheduled flight.

De Telegraaf's podcast discussed the fact that Helmut Marko and Christian Horner did not fly back to Europe together after the last Grand Prix in Saudi Arabia. Normally, they board the same private plane, which first drops Marko off in Graz, Austria, before taking Horner to his home base in England. After the race in Jeddah, Horner flew back alone while Helmut Marko boarded with Max Verstappen.

Albers doesn't understand team bosses

Albers - himself a former F1 driver and team boss - talks about his confusion when he sees that team bosses like Horner are also flown around in private jets: "In my time, and of course I'm already 44, back then we didn't have those budget caps, but it was all not so backward with private flights. I mean: why do team bosses - with all due respect - have to fly all private jets? Yeah sorry about that, I really don't understand."

The former driver does point out that there are two types of team bosses. One group includes very wealthy businessmen who fund their flights with self-earned money. "But team bosses who are not owners... Then, on the one hand, you are working on the budget cap, and on the other hand, you can bang in another few million. Where does it go sometimes?", Albers wonders aloud.