Chris Horner and wife, Spice Girl Geri Halliwell, defend after new leak of compromising documents

An 'inappropriate' story...
Ginger Spice and Red Bull: the start of the scandal
Talk Sport
And then... alleged incidents
Official statement from Red Bull
New season, new scandal
Horner says allegations are ‘nuts’
An innocent man?
Hubby in trouble
Who is Christian Horner?
How Geri Halliwell and Christian Horner met
Together as a family
Stood the test of time
A blended family
Renowned
Impressive CV
Red Bull action
Cleared
No further comment
24 hrs later
Christian Horner investigation evidence
Round Two: Chris Horner vs the media
In conclusion
Humiliation for Geri and their marriage?
A strong marriage
An 'inappropriate' story...

The last few weeks have been turbulent for former Spice Girl Geri Halliwell and her husband, Christian Horner, who has been boss of the Red Bull Formula 1 team since 2005. He is suspected of "acting inappropriately" towards one of his employees. Here's a look at the case...

Ginger Spice and Red Bull: the start of the scandal

Christian Horner, husband of Spice Girl, Geri Halliwell, was accused of misconduct earlier in February at the Red Bull F1 team, where he is CEO.

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Talk Sport

"It's pretty explosive stuff,"  Matt Lawton of the Times told talkSPORT. "It's messages of a s*l nature and we approached Red Bull with this material and asked them to authenticate it... We've had a legal letter from Horner's lawyers and he continues to deny the allegations made against him, but it's a pretty extraordinary story."

And then... alleged incidents

The Formula One team launched an investigation into allegations of 'inappropriate behaviour’. In early February, Horner was "grilled for eight hours," The Sun reported, "over his alleged 'controlling behaviour'". However, a decision about his future with Red Bull "could take months," insiders told the paper.

Official statement from Red Bull

But what were the allegations exactly? So far, Red Bull has been quite vague about them. It said in a press statement: "After being made aware of certain recent allegations, the company launched an ­independent investigation. This ­process, which is already under way, is being carried out by an external specialist barrister."

New season, new scandal

Allegations regarding Horner were being whispered around the sport just ahead of the new season. A source inside Red Bull also accused Christian Horner of ‘extremely controlling behaviour’, as reported by the Daily Mail.

Horner says allegations are ‘nuts’

Christian Horner, the married father of two, has dismissed the accusations as ‘nuts’ according to the Daily Mail. "I completely deny these claims," he says. So far, no evidence has been made public to support the claims against the Red Bull CEO.

An innocent man?

Meanwhile, The Sun reported that Geri Halliwell was "in floods of tears" when she heard about the allegations. But, as insiders told the paper: "She is insisting Christian has done nothing wrong."

Hubby in trouble

Geri’s husband is still fighting for his Red Bull Formula1 job after he was accused of 'acting inappropriately' towards another colleague. Can their relationship stand the media spotlight and what was Horner accused of?

Who is Christian Horner?

Horner is married to Spice Girls member Geri Halliwell and has a daughter with his ex-partner Beverley Allen. He is the stepfather to Halliwell's daughter, and the two also have a son together named Monty.

How Geri Halliwell and Christian Horner met

The pair met in 2009 when they were introduced at a racing event, as People tells us; but they didn't officially start dating until five years later!

Together as a family

They seemed to be inseparable as they were photographed at a racing event together in 2014. Soon after, they appeared very close at a wedding where the pair were hand in hand with Geri's daughter, Bluebell. Their relationship continued to whirlwind when they then announced their engagement the same year.

Stood the test of time

The following year, Geri and Chris were married in front of some pretty established guests. "Life works in mysterious ways. I didn't marry Geri because she's a Spice Girl. I married her because I fell in love with her," Chris Horner said in an interview in 2023 with the Telegraph.

A blended family

Happy married with a harmonious life at home where both parents' children are blended into a loving family, it is no surprise that Geri is standing by her man. Chris Horner is also more than just 'married to a Spice Girl' and has an impressive CV.

Renowned

Horner was awarded a CBE for services to motor racing during the New Year's Honours. It came after a record-breaking year for Red Bull.

Impressive CV

He has been in charge of all seven of the team's driver's championships and their six constructors titles since arriving at the track in 2005. Last season, Max Verstappen won his third title with Red Bull dominating the sport, winning 21 out of 22 races.

Red Bull action

Red Bull, which owns the F1 team, continued their statement: "The company takes these matters extremely seriously and the investigation will be complete as soon as practicable. It would not be appropriate to make any further comments at this time."

 

Cleared

Horner was cleared by an independent investigation. "The independent investigation into the allegations made against Mr. Horner has been completed and Red Bull can confirm that the complaint has been dismissed."

No further comment

"The investigation report is confidential and contains private information from the parties and third parties who assisted in the investigation, so we will not comment further out of respect for all involved. Red Bull will continue to strive to meet the highest standards in the workplace," the statement continued, as reported by Total Motorsport.

24 hrs later

A mere 24 hours later, hundreds of messages along with some images - apparently between Horner and the person making the initial complaint - were sent from an anonymous email account to members of F1 and the media.

Christian Horner investigation evidence

This was an email with the subject line "Christian Horner investigation evidence." It was was sent to a list of 150 F1 personnel, as reported by the-race.com.

Round Two: Chris Horner vs the media

So, the chief of Red Bull, Cristian Horner, has had to defend himself again against a new set of messages and photos. He says he has always denied the allegations and the he "respected the integrity of the independent investigation and fully cooperated with it every step of the way."

In conclusion

“It was a thorough and fair investigation conducted by an independent specialist barrister and it has concluded dismissing the complaint made," the statement concluded.

Humiliation for Geri and their marriage?

A source close to Geri told The Sun: “This is humiliation on an international scale for Geri, and it’s almost impossible to imagine what she’s going through right now."

A strong marriage

Even though she's devastated by the scandal, it appears that Geri Halliwell stands by her longtime partner. "It will be 10 years this time next year and we've been happily married for seven," Horner told The Telegraph in 2023. That doesn't sound like a relationship easily shattered by controversy.

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