Major Fred Vasseur update after Christian Horner to Ferrari rumours reignite

Rumours that Ferrari could sack team principal Fred Vasseur and replace him with former Red Bull boss Christian Horner are wide of the mark, PlanetF1.com understands.

It comes after wild reports that John Elkann, the Ferrari chairman, has been seriously considering replacing Vasseur just months after handing the Frenchman a new multi-year contract.

Fred Vasseur Ferrari exit rumours wide of the mark

Having fallen just 14 points short of winning the constructors’ title last year, Ferrari has endured a disappointing F1 2025 season.

The team remains without a win after 18 races of the season with the SF-25 car, driven by Charles Leclerc and major signing Lewis Hamilton, hamstrung by a fundamental issue with its ride height.

The problem contributed to Hamilton’s disqualification from the second race of the season in China due to excessive skid-block wear, with Ferrari forced to raise the car’s ride height at the cost of performance in the months since.

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Reports in the Italian media ahead of the Canadian Grand Prix in June claimed that Vasseur’s job was under threat in light of Ferrari’s poor start to the season.

Horner, then in charge of Red Bull, was named as a potential replacement along with Antonello Coletta, the head of Ferrari’s successful World Endurance Championship operation.

As reported at the time by PlanetF1.com, Ferrari is understood to have approached Horner prior to his shock split with Red Bull in July.

Ferrari moved to end the speculation surrounding Vasseur’s future by announcing that the 57-year-old had signed a multi-year contract extension on the eve of July’s Hungarian Grand Prix.

In a statement issued to PlanetF1.com, Benedetto Vigna, the Ferrari chief executive, claimed the deal reflected the team’s “trust in Fred’s leadership – a trust rooted in shared ambition, mutual expectations and clear responsibility.”

With Ferrari’s struggles continuing following the summer break, a report in Germany recently claimed that Mr Elkann was giving serious thought to replacing Vasseur with Horner named as a potential target.

However, PlanetF1.com understands from sources close to the situation that the claims of Vasseur’s position being under threat are wide of the mark.

As revealed by PlanetF1.com, Horner officially parted ways with Red Bull last month after agreeing a $100million (£74.2m/€85.1m) settlement.

It is believed that Horner will be free to pursue a return to F1 at some point during the 2026 season under the terms of his Red Bull departure.

As reported by PlanetF1.com on Wednesday, Horner is understood to be prioritising a shareholding and/or ownership role upon his F1 comeback with the 51-year-old not thought to be interested in a team principal-style position.

He is thought highly unlikely to find a shareholding or ownership position at Ferrari, which is predominantly publicly owned (68.19 per cent) with the remainder split between Exor N.V. (21.20 per cent) and Piero Ferrari (10.61 per cent).

Ferrari’s hire-and-fire policy is also unlikely to appeal to Horner, with Vasseur the fourth man to hold the role of team boss at Maranello since current F1 boss Stefano Domenicali resigned from the position in April 2014.

Speaking after the announcement of his new Ferrari deal, Vasseur revealed he was left “really angry” by the rumours surrounding his position at the Canadian Grand Prix.

And he argued that the speculation delayed a resolution to his future with the “noise” affecting the Ferrari workforce.

Vasseur told German publication Auto Motor und Sport: “Rumours caused the turmoil.

“I didn’t spread them, the media did. Neither Ferrari nor I said anything.

“But today, you can’t avoid this kind of distracting noise.

“I don’t want to tar all journalists with the same brush, but with the internet reporting has become much more aggressive. There is pressure to generate clicks.

“When these rumours first appeared in Canada, I was really angry because they went too far.

“My technical director Loic Serra was accused of not doing a good job, but the 2025 car was practically finished when Loic started working for us.

“The story with Charles Leclerc was similar. Some people regularly wrote that Charles was going to Mercedes.

“No one cared that he repeatedly confirmed he had a long-term contract with Ferrari.

“That has an impact on the team. In Italy, people tend to react more emotionally.

“Without all this noise, my talks with Ferrari would have gone much faster.”

Additional reporting by Thomas Maher

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