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Jonathan Wheatley is hoping to join Aston Martin after his departure from Audi, but he must make sure he prevents Christian Horner from also joining the team.
Wheatley left his team principal role with Audi last week, after just two races this season, despite the team performing relatively well.
The expectation is that Wheatley will join Aston Martin as team principal as the team need Adrian Newey to be more focused on his technical role to help address their issues.
Is Jonathan Wheatley the right man to get Aston Martin back on track in 2026?
What was your immediate reaction to the news? Let us know in the comments below!
While there is some concern that Wheatley could be held back by Audi given the nature of his contract, the long-term expectation is that he will take the reins at Aston Martin fairly soon.
Jonathan Wheatley could be joined by his former Red Bull CEO, Christian Horner. It was reported that Lawrence Stroll is eager to land Horner, but Wheatley must do everything in his power to prevent this move.
READ MORE: Ralf Schumacher warns F1 teams that staff ‘don’t want to work with Christian Horner’
Jonathan Wheatley lost power struggle to Mattia Binotto at Audi
While Jonathan Wheatley was the team principal at Audi, he didn’t have complete oversight. Prior to his arrival, Mattia Binotto joined then-Sauber as COO and CTO.
It’s been reported by AutoSport Japan that Binotto, who joined several months before Wheatley, managed to land several members from his Ferrari team, thus gaining an edge in their eventual power struggle.
“Both were hired with the understanding that they would be in the highest positions on the team. However, while Binotto was able to join up in August 2024, Wheatley was bound by his contract with Red Bull and was only able to move into Hinwill’s squad in April 2025.”
“As a result, Binotto had a seven-month advantage and was able to join Audi with some of his Ferrari-era confidants at the centre of decision-making.”
“Wheatley, on the other hand, was left with an assistant-like role running the race team and dealing with the media, which was clearly not what he wanted when he decided to leave Red Bull.”
It’s been reported that Binotto did not approve of Wheatley’s arrival at Audi, thus leading to tension between the two.
READ MORE: Bernie Ecclestone claims Jonathan Wheatley’s Aston Martin move only ‘makes sense’ for one key reason
Can Mattia Binotto add another podium to his tally in 2026 now that he is at the helm of Audi?
Let us know in the comments below!
Jonathan Wheatley must prevent Christian Horner arrival to avoid repeat of Audi situation
The power struggle between the two led to frequent clashes between Binotto and Wheatley. And while there have been no reports that these issues played a part in Wheatley’s decision to leave, it’s hard to imagine their tension not impacting his thought process.
With Wheatley expected to join Aston Martin relatively soon, he will be hoping to have more autonomy as team principal this time around.
But the arrival of Christian Horner as CEO could jeopardise this autonomy. Horner, who served as both CEO and team principal at Red Bull, is bound to have influence over team decisions and racing matters.
Wheatley, who worked under Horner at Red Bull, isn’t going to be happy at the prospect of taking orders from his former boss despite earning two promotions since their last time working together.
As such, when Wheatley sits across the table from Lawrence Stroll, it is in his best interest that he demands either that Horner not join the team or at least that he have autonomy over racing matters to prevent Horner from intervening.
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