Red Bull team principal Christian Horner said sport “should never be used as a political tool”, but must strike a “reasonable balance” regarding freedom of expression.
Formula 1’s governing body, the FIA, this year added a new rule that drivers need written permission to express political or religious views.
Horner said the first goal of sport should be to “entertain”.
The 49-year-old added: “You have that escapist element to him.”
The Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy (Bird) accused the FIA of “deleting drivers” with the changes to the sports code and questions its commitment to human rights.
Speaking at Red Bull’s ‘season launch’ in New York to reveal the car’s updated livery and new partnership with Ford, Horner stressed his team had always been open to drivers expressing their opinions.
“At Red Bull, we have certainly never limited our drivers on their freedom of expression or their ability to express themselves because they have a voice,” he said.
“I think it’s about finding a balance. In the world we live in today, everyone has a voice and that shouldn’t be taken away.
“But of course it has to be done responsibly. So we don’t want a bunch of opinionless robots going racing.
“As with all things, there just has to be a reasonable balance.”
Over the past few seasons, Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton and former Ferrari and Aston Martin driver Sebastian Vettel have used their platform in F1 to raise issues such as Black Lives Matter and LGBTQ+ rights.
Red Bull’s Sergio Perez said the drivers “don’t feel comfortable” with the restrictions imposed by the FIA.
The Mexican said: “We want to be ourselves and we want to be able to express ourselves in any way we want.
“We all have different religious views and beliefs. I understand the political side, but we should all be free to express ourselves as we wish.
“I believe in this sport it’s important to express yourself. There are younger drivers who I think will find it difficult to know what you can say or what you can’t say.
“For me, that’s not right. But we’ll discuss it.”
Red Bull ‘wants to keep winning’ – Verstappen
Red Bull swept a first constructors’ championship since 2013 last season thanks to 17 victories on the 22-race calendar – 15 of them thanks to Max Verstappen, who won back-to-back drivers’ titles.
Horner revealed the new RB19 car had “subtle aerodynamic changes” and said he hoped it could replicate the success of last year’s model.
Verstappen added that Red Bull cannot slack off in their quest for more silverware.
“I never really think about being the favorite because you have to keep winning and improving,” said the Dutchman. “If you are not, [your rivals] will catch up with you and overtake you. It’s about finding the performance and of course we want to keep winning.”
Verstappen set a new record in 2022 for most wins in a single F1 season, break the record of 13 held by Vettel and seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher.
He said repeating the success Red Bull achieved in the previous campaign would not be “easy” but they were “optimistic” about their chances.
The 25-year-old added: “I think we have a great opportunity.”
