F1 team owner is ready to offer Christian Horner ‘a king’s ransom’ after chasing him for seven years

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Christian Horner appeared to suffer a blow on Wednesday when Aston Martin confirmed that Adrian Newey would become their new team principal, with Andy Cowell reassigned.

It emerged during the Las Vegas GP weekend that Horner was a candidate for the Aston Martin job amid growing doubts over Cowell’s future. But the position has gone to his former Red Bull ally Newey instead.

Horner was sacked in the summer but can return to work from next spring under the settlement agreement he reached with his old employers.

While Horner boasts a formidable track record after adding 14 championship trophies to Red Bull’s cabinet, the power struggles at Milton Keynes towards the end of his spell in charge may have tainted his image in some quarters.

Lawrence Stroll is still determined to recruit Christian Horner

According to a report from The Daily Mail, Newey’s appointment doesn’t preclude the possibility of Horner joining Aston Martin.

Earlier this week, Newey showed Horner around the Aston Martin factory. That’s doubly significant.

On one level, it shows that Newey and Horner are back on good terms after an acrimonious end to their Red Bull relationship. And assuming Newey knew about the imminent restructure, it suggests there may still be a place for his old colleague at Silverstone.

Lawrence Stroll has been ‘courting’ Horner ‘for six or seven years’ and is still ready to offer him ‘a king’s ransom’. Ferrari, Alpine and a brand-new 12th team are alternative routes back into F1.

Horner wants a stake in a team if he’s to return to the sport, and Stroll is willing to provide it, just as he did for Newey. But friends have urged the former Red Bull chief to take his time and carefully assess his options.

Christian Horner isn’t the answer for Alpine right now

Horner’s talks with Alpine are apparently ‘ongoing’. They don’t currently have a team principal, with Steve Nielsen recently appointed managing director.

Nielsen reports to Flavio Briatore, who has been making the big-picture decisions at Enstone. The end of Alpine’s works engine operation, and the swift demotion of Jack Doohan, underlined his power.

While Horner and Briatore are friends, it’s unclear if there’s enough power to go around at the Renault-owned team.

Joining Aston Martin might still make more sense, because he could relieve Newey of the public-facing duties that would distract him from car development.