Buxton warns Ferrari that replacing Vasseur with Horner would be 'absolutely ludicrous'

F1 broadcaster Will Buxton has urged Ferrari to stand by team principal Fred Vasseur, warning that replacing him with Christian Horner at this stage of the team’s development would be a costly mistake — and that Ferrari’s own statement of support may already signal trouble.

Speculation linking Horner to Maranello gathered pace after the former Red Bull chief told The Times that Ferrari is the only team he would consider joining without an equity stake. Ferrari responded by issuing a statement reaffirming its “full confidence” in Vasseur’s leadership — a phrase that, for Buxton, set off immediate alarm bells.

“Over the last couple of days, Ferrari have come out and have attempted to unmuddy the waters by saying, ‘Ferrari has made its choices and has full confidence in the leadership of Fred Vasseur and his team and we will continue to do so,’” Buxton said on the Up To Speed podcast alongside former F1 driver David Coulthard. “Now that, for me, rings alarm bells because anytime in sport — be that Formula 1, be that football, be that anything — that you receive the full backing of the board, you may as well start packing up your desk. Because it’s over, right?”

Buxton was unambiguous about what he believes the right call should be. “What you would normally expect from Ferrari is for them to do something absolutely ludicrous and throw away all this hard work,” he said. “So, I pray that that is not what they do, but given everything we know about Ferrari, I wouldn’t be shocked to see them ring a change. I really, really, really, really hope that they stick with Fred and they see this through.”

Vasseur joined Ferrari ahead of the 2023 season, replacing Mattia Binotto as team principal. The team finished third in the constructors’ championship in his debut year, improved to second in 2024 — just 14 points behind McLaren — before slipping to fourth in 2025. Ferrari currently sits second in the 2026 constructors’ standings, behind Mercedes.

The backdrop of incremental progress makes the timing of any leadership change particularly sensitive. Buxton’s broader point is that disrupting a team mid-rebuild, especially one that has shown consistent upward momentum under Vasseur, carries far greater risk than the potential reward of installing a high-profile replacement.