BREAKING: "I was nineteen, you f----!": McManus goes off on Marko in public spat following rumors of abuse in Red Bull Academy

VIDEO: Dakota McManus and Helmut Marko had a very public spat in the Monte Carlo paddock this morning as video appears to show McManus screaming at Marko before collapsing

MONTE CARLO, MONACO 

It's no secret that rumors have been swirling these past weeks about Dakota McManus and her veiled trauma remarks following the Miami GP press conference. While McManus herself has been somewhat silent on those accusations (or lack thereof), it seems that everybody else in the paddock has an opinion. Lawrence Stroll has taken McManus' side, and Otmar Szafnauer has called for a full-frontal ethics investigation.

All of this came to a head this morning as SkySports UK camera crews captured a very messy, very public spat between McManus and Helmut Marko, her direct superior as a member of Red Bull's driver's academy. It is understood that with her new transfer to Mercedes, McManus will also be severing ties with the driver's academy that helped her get her superlicense points in the first place.

The video begins with Helmut Marko doing a routine interview with SkySports UK. In this interview, the Red Bull and AlphaTauri advisor was asked about McManus and the recent rumors surrounding her, as well as if the rumors and her departure form the team could somehow be correlated.

"Well, I think this speaks for itself. Dakota was always an outsider within our programme, things never seemed to stick with her the way they stuck for drivers like Daniil or Alexander." Marko began. "She's had a lot of pressure on her shoulders the last few years, and who am I to judge, but I think that perhaps she has misread her experiences with us. Just because she didn't get the results that her peers did, doesn't mean there was abuse or negligence of any kind within our programme. That is simply untrue."

As the interviewer prepares to ask another question, McManus enters the frame with Dennis Hauger and Liam Lawson, two of the current drivers in Red Bull's academy.

"Because I didn't get the same results?" McManus can be heard shouting. "What fucking results, huh!? I was nineteen, you f---! What kind of bloody c---- forces a nineteen-year-old girl to take on the workout plan of men in their early to mid-twenties? What kind of c---- forces a teenage girl to starve herself on a diet built for a Russian man with twice her body mass? Starves her so much that she learns she may have lost the ability to have a child? So that she has a panic attack at the thought of anyone trying to get intimate with her?"

McManus is hysterical as she goes on to list more of the ripple effects of her time at Red Bull Racing, before she finally collapses to the floor. Lawson can be seen trying to comfort her before he's aggressively pushed away. Eventually, Sergio Perez comes running out of Red Bull's hospitality and can be seen helping Dakota to her feet and shielding her from further media attention.  

Dr. Helmut Marko and Christian Horner have refused to comment, however Franz Tost has stated that he is 'concerned for Dakota's mental state" and that AlphaTauri will be 'requesting a formal inquest' into McManus' time at Red Bull Racing

TWITTER

the fact that red bull racing forced dakota onto a diet that clearly wasn't working, as well as forcing her into a workout routine that wasn't built for someone of her age and body type, and that nobody in the organization listened to her to the point where she developed infertility issues at such a young age is actually disgusting.

- HAPPY RACE WEEK (user25409)

I am sickened. Where is the accountability? It takes courage to speak up about your trauma. Dakota should not have been forced into this position. A position where her statement came about in such a messy and public fashion.

She should have been able to open up when she felt safe, supported and secure.

Shame on you all.

- Claire Williams (ClaireWilliamsOfficial)

Shocked and disgusted about what happened in Monaco today. Dakota, you are such a brave, special soul. I believe you one hundred percent. I hope you know how strong you are. As a sport, we need to do better. We need to hold the parties involved responsible. Because you deserve closure.

- Lewis Hamilton (LewisHamilton)

The FIA confirms that they will be formally interviewing Dakota McManus and Dr. Helmut Marko in respect to what happened during her time at the RBDA. Details on a formal inquest are expected to follow shortly.

- Will Buxton (WillBuxtonOfficial)

I'm shocked that this was even allowed to happen in our sport. And I am furious that it happened to someone like Dakota, someone who came into this sport at such a young, impressionable age, and that her first exposure to something that was, for her, a teenage passion, a lifelong goal, was such an inescapable nightmare. 

- Kimi Raikkonen (KimiRaikkonen)

I have no words. You deserved better. ❤️

- Lance Stroll (LanceStroll)