Former F1 driver Riccardo Patrese believes that the inappropriate behaviour allegation scandal of 2024 could be the deciding factor if Ferrari are weighing up replacing Fred Vasseur with sacked Red Bull team principal Christian Horner. The Brit was relieved of his duties by Red Bull last week after a historic 20-year run as team principal and CEO, during which he delivered a combined 14 World Championship titles. With the team on the decline and star driver Max Verstappen’s future uncertain, the organisation’s senior leadership decided that the time was right to make a change.
This leaves Horner in a complicated position. He is unlikely to enjoy the same power or influence with another F1 team, and the 51-year-old has limited options. Alpine have been tipped as a potential landing spot, given his relationship with Flavio Briatore. They would also be a good long-term project, given that they currently sit at the bottom of the standings.
However, with Vasseur’s contract expiring at the end of the year, Ferrari could attempt to lure Horner to Maranello at the third time of asking. According to Patrese, though, this is unlikely, due to allegations of inappropriate behaviour made by a female Red Bull employee in 2024.
Horner, who denied the allegations throughout, was eventually cleared of any wrongdoing following internal investigations, but the saga remains fresh in the memory for many. “There has been a lot of criticism of him because of their results, and they are up and down and do not have consistency,” Patrese told Prime Casino.
“But after the storms and the tornadoes at Ferrari, I think the air is getting better. It looks like that, at the moment, everything is sleeping about Vasseur. The speculation has stopped.
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“Horner is very good, but I think that all the stories from last year would be a problem. He can put on the table his record over the last 20 years. He has a very good pedigree. But one year on, they are still talking about this story.
“I’m a friend of Christian Horner and sent him a message of support, and I think that he is a very good team principal. I think he’s able to do the job, but Ferrari wants to have an image and not many distractions. This is my opinion.”
While Horner looks for his next role, Red Bull can’t afford to hang about. With two races to go until the summer break, new team principal Laurent Mekies must turn fortunes around immediately if he is to convince Verstappen that Milton Keynes is a better option than Mercedes at Brackley in 2026.