{
  "id": 16118150,
  "title": "George Russell responds to Christian Horner's Red Bull simulator claim",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/22/george-russell-responds-to-christian-horners-red-bull-simulator-claim",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-10-22T22:36:56.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Yahoo Sports",
    "slug": "yahoo-sports",
    "url": "https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/george-russell-responds-christian-horners-223656412.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Mercedes F1 racer George Russell has addressed former Red Bull Racing CEO Christian Horner's assertion that he, Lando Norris, and Oscar Piastri paid to utilize the Milton Keynes team's simulators during their youth. Horner, now estranged from Red Bull, made the claim on the High Performance podcast, stating that the person operating the simulator deemed the young drivers superior to those Red Bull had at the time. He even relayed the conversation he had with then-team principal Helmut Marko about the talent of Russell, Norris, and Piastri. However, Russell, who currently leads the Formula 1 drivers' championship, clarified that simulators were not a common feature in junior racing during their time. The 2013 junior season, he explained, was a period where no teams possessed simulators, making the opportunity to test-drive the simulator in a Formula Renault car a rare chance. This experience, he emphasized, was primarily for preparation for testing and racing in the Formula Renault series. The United States Grand Prix, Russell's next race, is set for October 23-25 at the Circuit of the Americas, marking the start of the penultimate race of the season.",
  "summary": "George Russell has responded to Christian Horner's claims that he, Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri paid to use Red Bull's simulator as junior drivers",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Motorsport.com",
        "title": "Christian Horner reveals what led up to his 'abrupt and brutal' Red Bull F1 exit",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/22/christian-horner-reveals-what-led-up-to-his-abrupt-and-brutal-red-16074577",
        "published": "2026-10-22T17:07:54.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}