Christian Horner's Ferrari rumours have been thrown into doubt after Martin Brundle called the former Red Bull team principal directly to find out what was really behind the speculation.
Horner's future came under scrutiny after an interview with The Times to promote his memoir, Drive, in which he described Ferrari as “the biggest brand in Formula 1” and “the sleeping giant” of the championship.
Those comments quickly fuelled reports linking Horner with Fred Vasseur's position at Ferrari. The speculation became significant enough for Ferrari to hold an unscheduled press briefing to publicly back its current team principal.
But Brundle decided to go straight to the source. Speaking on Sky Sports F1, the former F1 driver and pundit revealed that he had called Horner to establish whether there was any truth behind the reports.
“There was a lot of talk of Christian Horner this week going to Ferrari,” Brundle said. “So I rang Christian to find out all about it, and he said, ‘I was just being polite and respectful about Ferrari in another interview I did, and it took on a whole...’”
Brundle suggested that Horner's comments had been significantly expanded by the speculation that followed. “It was sort of two plus two equals seven and a half, I think, on that,” he added.
According to Brundle, Horner also gave no indication that he was actively pursuing the Ferrari team principal role. “I don't think Christian is interested in that, as he told it to me, that he's interested in anything in particular at the moment in Formula 1, until the right opportunity comes up,” Brundle said.
Brundle also highlighted the potential dynamic of Horner working alongside Lewis Hamilton, given the intense rivalry between Horner's Red Bull team and Hamilton during the 2021 F1 title battle.
“Can you imagine Christian and Lewis working together after 2021? That might be an interesting dynamic for a while there,” Brundle said.
At the same time, Brundle questioned whether Ferrari would benefit from continually changing its key personnel. He argued that the team principal role has changed considerably in Formula 1 and suggested Ferrari should maintain stability and continue supporting its existing structure.
Ferrari has already moved to shut down the speculation surrounding Vasseur. Communications chief Maria Conti said the team's “position is clear, has not changed, and Ferrari has made its choices already”, while insisting there is “full confidence” in Vasseur.
Vasseur himself acknowledged that the Horner speculation had become a distraction for Ferrari. “Mr Horner is looking for a job, that everybody knows, everywhere,” he said.
“But what can I do? Just try to do my best to push the team, to rise them to be motivated, focus on what is better today,” Vasseur added.
Brundle's phone call therefore offered a direct explanation for how Horner's comments about Ferrari became linked to the team principal position. While Horner remains open to the right opportunity in Formula 1, his remarks about Ferrari, according to Brundle, were not intended as a signal that he was pursuing Vasseur's role.
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