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Martin Brundle says Christian Horner described his Ferrari praise as polite and respectful, while Brundle played down talk of a particular F1 role.
What has changed? · 02/10/2026, 12:07 UTC
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Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur said there was little calm around the team as questions about his future persisted after the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. Charles Leclerc finished fourth in Baku and Lewis Hamilton sixth. Vasseur told RacingNews365 that roughly half the questions put to him concerned his position, estimating that the subject came up 25 times a day. [1]
Vasseur said Ferrari was fighting for second place in the championship. He called his role the best job in the world and said seven races remained. Asked about Christian Horner amid speculation over a replacement, Vasseur described him as looking for a job. [1]
The pressure had also featured in Vasseur’s comments after qualifying. Crash.net, reporting remarks to Sky Italia, focused on his description of how difficult it was to work at Ferrari amid reports that someone would be fired. Motorsport.hu, citing Formula Passion, relayed his concern about the lack of calm while placing greater emphasis on speculation about Horner taking his place. [2] [3]
Vasseur signed a multi-year contract extension in summer 2025, as RacingNews365 and Crash.net report. Horner taking his place remains speculation; Vasseur’s stated priority is Ferrari’s fight for second in the championship. [1] [2]
Speaking after Saturday’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix, Vasseur said Ferrari were “not working in the perfect serenity” as questions about Horner continued. He said the discussion was frustrating for him and others at the team. Asked about his remark that Horner was looking for a job “everywhere”, Vasseur said he was serious. [4]
Horner, whom Red Bull dismissed as chief executive officer and team principal after the 2025 British Grand Prix, described Ferrari as “the dream” in a Times interview reported by BBC Sport. He said it was the only Formula 1 team he would join without a shareholding. Red Bull has not publicly explained his dismissal.
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Charles Leclerc finished fourth for Ferrari at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, with team-mate Lewis Hamilton sixth. Vasseur said the continuing questions about Horner were making it harder for the team to work in a calm atmosphere. [4]
At a news conference on 29 September, Ferrari chief communications officer Maria Conti said the company had “full confidence” in team principal Frédéric Vasseur and his team, RacingNews365 reports. She said Ferrari had already made its choices and would not comment on assumptions from outside the company. [5]
The remarks come amid speculation about Christian Horner and Ferrari. RacingNews365 says Horner described Ferrari as his “dream job” in an interview with The Times the previous week. [5]
RacingNews365 also cites unnamed sources who describe discussions about how a possible Vasseur departure at the end of the season would work. Ferrari’s public position remains that it backs Vasseur and his team. [5]
In an interview with The Times before the Italian Grand Prix, Christian Horner said there was one team he would consider joining without an ownership stake. Asked about Ferrari, he called it Formula 1’s biggest brand and “the dream”. The Race reads Ferrari as the implied exception, though Horner did not explicitly name it as such. Motor Sport Magazine reported his Ferrari comments on 25 September, before RacingNews365’s 30 September article. [6][7][8]
Stefan Kerk, writing for RacingNews365, interprets the remarks as undermining Ferrari team principal Frédéric Vasseur. The Race offers a different reading: it says Horner was not believed to be publicly seeking the job and reports, citing its sources, that no discussions about a Ferrari role had taken place. Both are discussing the same Times interview. [6][8]
Ferrari expressed full confidence in Vasseur at a press event earlier that week, RacingNews365 reported. Horner has not announced a return to Formula 1. [6]
Martin Brundle said he called Christian Horner after Horner’s praise of Ferrari prompted speculation about his Formula 1 future. Brundle told Sky Sports F1 that Horner described his earlier comments as an attempt to be polite and respectful towards the team, RacingNews365 reported on 2 October. [9]
Brundle’s own view was that too much had been read into those comments. He said he did not think Horner was interested in any particular F1 role at present, but might consider the right opportunity if it arose. [9]
Ferrari communications chief Maria Conti said the team’s position had not changed and expressed full confidence in team principal Fred Vasseur. [9]