Ex-F1 Driver Brands Christian Horner as the “Winning Formula” Ferrari Desperately Needs

Christian Horner suffered from a disappointing end to his Red Bull stint after serving the team loyally for over two decades. The Briton was snubbed unexpectedly by the outfit and now has nowhere to go. Horner has been rumored to be looking at his options to potentially join teams such as Alpine, Ferrari, among others. As such, ex-F1 driver and snubbed FIA steward Johnny Herbert ponders over the positives of the 51-year-old’s move to the Scuderia.

Ferrari has been suffering from a dismal performance slump in the 2025 season. Both Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc are giving it their all but have failed to achieve even a single race win in the first 18 outings. Now, Christian Horner is being rumored to be linked with the Italian constructor once Fred Vasseur leaves the outfit. However, the Frenchman might be replaced if Maranello does not recover at all from their slump.

Johnny Herbert insisted that Ferrari needed to attract the right personnel to have a realistic shot at winning and having a dominant car on track. Herbert recalled that there was a push to acquire Adrian Newey back when he left Red Bull; however, the aero-genius decided to join Aston Martin. However, the Briton believed that Maranello should have pushed hard to poach Newey back then.

Like anything, you need to be able to attract the right personnel to be able to give you a chance of having the fastest car. I am sure there was a push to try and get Adrian Newey to join, and maybe there should have been a bigger push for that to happen.

Johnny Herbert told bettinglounge.

Johhny Herbert clarified that he liked Fred Vasseur and his ways of leading Ferrari a lot, and did not discount him of his skills. However, a team like the Scuderia required someone who was able to create a winning formula in the past, Christian Horner was no stranger to his as he helped Red Bull achieve eight driver’s title and six constructors’ titles. As such, Herbert noted that these requirements pointed to Horner and hence he would be a good fit to lead the Italian outfit.

I like Fred Vasseur a lot, but maybe you need to get someone who’s been able to create a winning formula. And that potentially points to Christian Horner.

Johnny Herbert added.

Ferrari has ‘all the ingredients’ required to succeed in Formula 1

Ferrari is the most historic team in the history of Formula 1, racing in the pinnacle of motorsport since its inception back in 1950. The team has gone through multiple ups and downs over the years, and the current slump isn’t exactly suprising or unexpected. As such, Johnny Herbert believes that the team possesses the required skills to return back to their winning ways.

Johnny Herbert reflected that the prime team had to be Ferrari, especially with their iconic status in the sport. He assured that the team had all the ingredients they needed, but they hadn’t been able to put them all together. Herbert reckoned that Maranello undoubtedly had good drivers in their lineup. However, the team now needed to overcome the intense mistakes that they made during a race weekend.

The prime one has to be Ferrari, They’re the ones that have all the ingredients they need. They just haven’t been able to put them together. They’ve got the drivers, so there’s no argument on that front. They have probably overcome a lot of those mistakes, pit stop mistakes, strategy mistakes that they used to make. 

Johnny Herbert noted.

Christian Horner hasn’t commented on his post-retirement plans and had recently exited Red Bull within full capacity following a massive financial settlement. The Briton was definitely one of the more polarizing personalities in the sport and was unmatched in terms of skills. As such, time will tell if he decides to return to the sport that has given it him all or potentially join a different category.

Read More: Ralf Schumacher Exposes “Tension” Between George Russell and Toto Wolff over Max Verstappen interest

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