Geri Horner has returned to social media for the first time since her husband Christian became embroiled in an internal investigation at Formula, having stood by her spouse throughout the scandal.
The Spice Girl shared a sweet birthday tribute for Victoria Beckham as she turned 50 on Wednesday, along with a gallery of snaps documenting their friendship.
Geri captioned the post: ‘Happy Birthday @victoriabeckham you’re amazing! From our Tank girl audition over 30 years ago, and you’re still shining bright! Wishing you love & joy.’
Christian was the subject of an internal investigation in February after accusations – which he denies – of ‘coercive behaviour’ towards a female colleague were made against him, before he was cleared.
However, his future remains under scrutiny after text messages between Horner and what appears to be a female colleague were leaked in 79 screenshots, as an anonymous sender sent an email that also copied in FIA chief Mohammed Ben Sulayem and F1 boss Stefano Domenicali.
Geri Horner has returned to social media for the first time since her husband Christian became embroiled in Formula One scandal, posting a birthday tribute for Victoria Beckham
The Spice Girl shared a sweet birthday tribute for Victoria Beckham as she turned 50 on Wednesday, along with a gallery of snaps documenting their friendship
While Christian was cleared of misconduct, pals said that Geri was ‘extremely humiliated’ after a tranche of intimate messages her Formula One boss husband allegedly sent to a woman colleague were leaked days later.
One said: ‘All along Christian promised there was nothing in it.’
She had stood by the 50-year-old motorsport executive during an independent investigation by his company after he was accused of coercive behaviour towards a woman employee.
The Red Bull boss was cleared of wrongdoing, allowing him to keep his £8million-a-year job and fly out to Bahrain ahead of the season-opening Grand Prix last month.
Friends of his wife said she had been ‘so very relieved’ that her family could finally move on with their lives after Horner spent weeks under the spotlight.
But just 24 hours after being formally cleared, the Red Bull team principal’s career and marriage were plunged back into chaos.
Hundreds of WhatsApp exchanges purportedly between Horner and the colleague, some sexual in nature, were released via an anonymous email account.
There is no way of checking the validity of the lengthy and frequent messages which appear to switch between the mundane and the intimate.
Christian was the subject of an internal investigation after accusations – which he denies – of ‘coercive behaviour’ towards a female colleague were made, before he was cleared
Despite standing by her spouse during the investigation, pals said Geri was ‘humiliated’ when hundreds of messages with the employee, some of a sexual nature, were leaked
The tranche of almost 80 screenshots – which included a number of images – were sent to hundreds of journalists and key figures in Formula One.
One friend of the former Spice Girl said he feared for how the star, who has been left mortified at the embarrassing fall out, will be able to comprehend such a public humiliation.
He said: ‘Geri has been living in this happy, happy bubble for so many years now, she thought she had her prince and her knight in shining armour but now this.
‘She thought that it had all gone away, she was delighted and over the moon when she learned Christian had been cleared.
‘Geri was pilloried when she got together with Christian because he had just had another baby with another woman but she has worked hard to rid that image of herself and Christian, and in particular that she is a homewrecker.
‘Now it has all come crashing down. The tears stopped when the judgment came in on Wednesday, now they absolutely will have started again. This will destroy her. All along Christian promised there was nothing in it.’
In recent weeks, Geri was said to be ‘mortified and angry’ with her husband of almost ten years, who she has a seven-year-old son with, for humiliating her.
One source close to the star said that she ‘wasn’t sure what to believe’ throughout the saga but was determined to get through it with their marriage unscathed.
‘Geri is no fish wife but she finally got the man she wanted and she won’t want to let him go. This could end up being a big dilemma for her,’ the source said.
Among those to receive the file ahead of this weekend’s race were FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem and F1 chief executive Stefano Domenicali.
Shortly after the leak, Horner released a statement which read: ‘I will not comment on anonymous speculation, but to reiterate I have always denied the allegations.
‘I respected the integrity of the independent investigation and fully cooperated with it every step of the way. It was a thorough and fair investigation conducted by an independent specialist barrister, and it has concluded dismissing the complaint made. I remain fully focused on the start of the season.’
However, just days after the leak, Geri and Christian put on a show of unity, when she proudly stood at his side, kissed and held hands during the Bahrain Grand Prix.
The woman who accused Horner of coercive behaviour was last week suspended from her role at Red Bull as a direct result of the investigation after being told her evidence was ‘dishonest’.
It was then reported that she has appointed new lawyers and is now planning to appeal the verdict that exonerated him.
A source quote by the outlet claimed: ‘Christian and Geri are braced for more fireworks but a thorough investigation has already found in his favour.
‘The woman’s honesty has been called into question and her evidence was shown to be flawed.’
Last month, Christian also received hundreds of comments from baffled fans after he posted a Mother’s Day message to Halliwell.
Fans claimed the timing of his message was ‘strategic’ amid his ‘sex texts’ scandal and branded him ‘stupid’ for not disabling comments on his Instagram.
He shared photos of his wife to mark Mother’s Day, along with a heartfelt tribute to her in the caption.
He wrote: ‘Happy Mother’s Day – So appreciative of the mums in our family for everything they do. We’re always grateful, today and every day.’
When Christian headed to Melbourne for the Australian Grand Prix, Geri was noticeably absent, and sources cliamed tha she had given her husband a list of rules in the wake of the scandal.
‘One is that Christian cuts or reduces contact with the woman — but that is difficult because of her role at Red Bull,’ News Corp reported.
‘And she has definitely had her say over what messages he sends. For obvious reasons, Geri would like the female colleague — who she knew before her appointment — to be out of the picture as much as possible.
‘But they cannot sack her as there are no grounds to do so.’
GBN reported that Christian was not impressed with the list or his wife’s apparent mistrust in him.
‘Christian was initially hurt by the idea of a list of rules and said it felt like her showing distrust,’ a source said.
The couple tied the knot at a star-studded ceremony at St Mary’s Church in Woburn in 2015
‘She insisted that while she still loves him, she has to protect herself and urged him to put himself in her shoes to understand the torment she’s endured with the public humiliation and embarrassment.
‘Christian eventually backed down and has agreed to do whatever it takes.’
Geri and Christian tied the knot at St Mary’s Church in Woburn, Bedfordshire, six years after they first met at the British Grand Prix in 2009.
Christian left his partner Beverley just six months after the birth of their daughter Olivia in 2014 and set up home with Geri.
In November 2014 they announced their engagement in The Times newspaper.
Two years after getting married in 2017, the pair welcomed their first child together, named Montague George Hector Horner.
Geri and Christian share two homes in the English countryside, in Oxfordshire and Hertfordshire, with one boasting a farm with three donkeys, goats and stables to fit 14 horses.
As she embraced a new lifestyle in the countryside, Geri decided to make over her image in an attempt to banish the ‘homewrecker’ tag and present their relationship as wholesome.
A source told Mail Plus that Geri has been ‘ultra cautious with her image, trying so hard to shake off her brassy Ginger Spice past and transform herself into a wholesome Oxfordshire housewife’.