Geri Horner yesterday put on a defiant show of unity with her husband amid her distress over leaked flirtatious messages he allegedly sent to a colleague.
Her eyes appeared red, but the former Spice Girl walked hand in hand with her husband Christian at the launch of the Formula 1 season in Bahrain.
The troubled couple also kissed passionately in the paddock of Horner’s Red Bull team before the grand prix in what appeared to be an attempt to show the world that their nine-year marriage was intact.
He has been under pressure since Horner was accused of “inappropriate behaviour” by a female colleague in early February.
Just as he was acquitted of any crime, a tranche of WhatsApp messages supposedly between him and the woman were leaked to the media.
Former Spice Girl Geri Horner yesterday put on a defiant show of unity with her husband Christian amid heartbreak over leaked flirtatious messages she allegedly sent to a colleague.
Her eyes appeared red, but the former Spice Girl walked hand in hand with her husband Christian Horner at the launch of the Formula 1 season in Bahrain.
Viewers yesterday watched as Mr Horner and his wife kissed in full view of the cameras, leading some to suggest “it may have been just for show”.
Afterwards, Mrs Horner, 51, who has a seven-year-old son, Monty, with the Red Bull boss, 50, looked pointedly at the cameras.
Friends of the singer said she wanted to show solidarity after “getting tired of speculation about the future of her marriage” and that she also “wanted to change the narrative.”
People close to ex Ginger Spice say she’s been “struggling a lot with humiliation.”
They fear that, despite the couple appearing together, Mrs Horner, who has a 17-year-old daughter from a previous relationship, will not be able to get over the scandal.
But yesterday, to the outside world, he showed that he was going to fight for his marriage.
She also made sure to look the part – dressed in a cream vintage Gucci dress, accessorised with a pair of Jimmy Choo pumps and a Hermes Kelly mini clutch priced at £21,000.
She wore a red string bracelet on her left wrist to signify her commitment to the Jewish spiritual teachings of Kabbalah.
She has followed this belief for a long time and it is said that wearing the cord protects from any “evil and misfortune” that may be “caused by the evil eye.” Her friends say she gives them strength.
Sources close to Mrs Horner say she has become increasingly spiritual over the years and has been meditating to help deal with her trauma in recent weeks.
A source said: “Geri is really into hippy-dippy spiritual healing, she really believes in it and has been trying to use it a lot lately.” Meditation is her great passion and she is convinced of it.’
She surprised the F1 world when she arrived in Bahrain just hours after the leak of WhatsApp messages, supposedly sent by her husband and which have been described as “inappropriate”.
On Wednesday, Horner was cleared of any wrongdoing after a three-week investigation by an outside lawyer for the F1 team’s parent company, Red Bull GmbH.
The Horners were said to be “encouraged” to move forward from the scandal.
So Mrs Horner set off from Luton Airport’s VIP terminal on Thursday morning for a six-hour flight on a private jet owned by billionaire property developer Tony Gallagher.
But by the time he arrived in Bahrain at 6.23pm, his world had once again fallen apart after the messages were leaked.
The messages apparently exchanged between Horner and the complainant were sent to 149 Formula 1 figures, including journalists.
Geri surprised the F1 world when she arrived in Bahrain just hours after the leak of WhatsApp messages, supposedly sent by her husband and which have been described as “inappropriate”.
The singer was seen wearing a red string bracelet on her left arm, which is said to “ward off evil.”
It is understood the plane Ms Horner was traveling on had Wi-Fi so she could have viewed the messages while in the air. When she met her husband at the five-star Ritz-Carlton hotel in Bahrain that night, it was the first time they had seen each other face to face since the messages were leaked.
The next day, sources in Bahrain say she was seen “outside the house” but managed to avoid the cameras. Mr Horner has always denied his colleague’s claims.
The turmoil did not affect his team’s performance, with driver Max Verstappen winning ahead of teammate Sergio Pérez.