Christian Horner warned Ferrari “always expects miracles” amid F1 rumours

Christian Horner has been warned over a potential move to Ferrari, with former F1 team boss Guenther Steiner suggesting he would “struggle like anybody else” to meet the team’s high expectations.

Rumours over Horner’s F1 future have intensified in recent weeks.

Horner officially left Red Bull in September, ending a 20-year association with the team.

Since his departure, the 51-year-old has been linked to several other teams. 

Haas boss Ayao Komatsu revealed there were talks with Horner, but Haas have since ruled out any further discussions. 

Aston Martin has also dismissed the idea of signing him.

Ferrari remain a possible destination given their disappointing 2025 F1 campaign. 

The team is winless and has shown little improvement throughout the year.

A slow start to the 2026 season could again put team principal Frederic Vasseur under pressure, although he received public backing from Ferrari chairman John Elkann during the United States GP weekend.

Alpine is another potential option for Horner, owing to his close relationship with Flavio Briatore. 

However, it is understood that Horner seeks a significant degree of control within a team, potentially including a shareholding, which complicates any return to the sport.

Horner warned about Ferrari

Horner has previously been approached by Ferrari. 

The team courted him at the end of 2022 while searching for a replacement for Mattia Binotto. 

Horner, unwilling to leave Red Bull at the time, declined, and Ferrari instead appointed Vasseur, who was at Sauber.

Speaking on The Red Flags podcast, Steiner explained why he believes a move to Ferrari is unlikely for Horner.

“I don’t have any insight, but my good guess is, I mean, Christian would struggle like anybody else at Ferrari,” Steiner said.

“It’s a difficult place, but for Christian to go to Ferrari, I mean, Ferrari as we all know always expects miracles, but they take a little bit longer, and they don’t give anybody enough time.

“I think at the moment, they understood that. I think John Elkann understood that, therefore, they extended Fred’s contract as Fred needs a little bit more time to fix it or at least until next year when the new rules come out.

“And if the car is good, I think everything will be fine. If the car is not good, I don’t know what is happening then, and I don’t think they know what is happening then.

“But at the moment, I don’t think Christian will go to Ferrari, or Ferrari will not go after Christian at the moment.

“You never know what’s happening in a year, but at the moment. I think it’s not happening.”