Lewis Hamilton's F1 boss opens up on Horner to Ferrari rumours

Ferrari F1 team principal Fred Vasseur has opened up on the rumours around a move to the Scuderia for former Red Bull boss, Christian Horner.

Lewis Hamilton's F1 boss has been the subject of rumours linking him with a dismissal from the team following a run of poor results, despite having signed a new contract just a few months ago.

But Horner's availability since being sacked by Red Bull in July has put the pressure on a number of team bosses up and down the grid, with it being known that Horner wants a return having claimed 14 championships with Red Bull across 20 seasons.

Ahead of the US Grand Prix weekend, Ferrari chairman Elkann released a statement publicly providing support for Vasseur, in a move that responded to the growing Horner rumours.

Now, Vasseur has revealed the real reason behind the statement, suggesting it was used to directly quieten media speculation.

"For everybody it's good to have this kind of message," Vasseur told F1 media at the US GP. "But as we have a permanent contact, we already had the message, that was more for the third party and external target."

When pressed on how vital the statement was to Vasseur, he replied: "Yes, it's important because like this you stop the discussion and you are focused on the next one and not to reply to all the questions about this."

Vasseur going nowhere

2025 has been a poor year for Ferrari, with the team currently sat third in the constructors' championship, 344 points behind already confirmed champions McLaren.

That's despite the fact that they only finished 11 points behind McLaren in 2024, and have added seven-time world champion Hamilton to their ranks since then.

The 40-year-old is yet to have secured a grand prix podium, while neither he nor team-mate Charles Leclerc have put up a serious fight for a grand prix victory all season.

It has been that worrying statistic which has caused pressure to be piled on Vasseur, and the Frenchman has seemingly not had the answers to the SF-25's baffling lack of pace at certain events.

However, the Frenchman will continue to lead the team in 2026 in order to take Ferrari into a new era, with the Scuderia looking to take advantage of new regulations that are sweeping into the sport.

Horner, meanwhile, has been linked with a plethora of other teams, including Alpine, Aston Martin and Haas, though none have materialised into a legitimate role just yet.

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