Ralf Schumacher has spotted one ‘problem’ in the F1 paddock that could harm Christian Horner’s new job chances

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It’s no surprise that Christian Horner is already being talked about in relation to other roles within Formula 1 after his Red Bull Racing exit.

Red Bull announced Christian Horner would be leaving his role as team principal after more than 20 years in charge following the British Grand Prix.

Laurent Mekies has been named as Horner’s replacement, and his first task is to prepare the team for the upcoming double-header at Spa and the Hungaroring.

However, for Horner, the next steps are still unknown, as he’s technically still contracted to Red Bull until the end of 2030.

That hasn’t stopped the 51-year-old from being linked with several other teams on the grid.

Horner has been spoken about as an option for Ferrari, with their current team principal, Fred Vasseur, under pressure and his contract set to expire at the end of the season.

Alpine have also been suggested as a possible destination for Horner, but Ralf Schumacher has identified an issue that could be a barrier to him getting another job with a team in the paddock.

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Ralf Schumacher thinks ‘very good’ F1 staff no longer want to work with Christian Horner

Schumacher was asked during an interview with Sport1 where he thinks the former Red Bull team boss could be going next, with rumours suggesting Horner has been linked with Ferrari, and explained: “Yeah, so let’s see if it is actually true.

“I don’t understand why, because I think Fred Vasseur is very good, and we should allow stability, but obviously, people are very impatient.

“That means that there could be a space available or will become available.

“And then we have Alpine, someone has been placed or put in the position on an interim basis, but I don’t think that’s the long-term transition.

“That means, based on his experience, I believe Christian Horner is a really good man.

“The only problem, and this is just the way it is if you ask around in the paddock and this is what Red Bull has suffered from recently, that the employees, the experienced good ones, simply no longer wanted to go to Red Bull because of Christian Horner and the way he leads the team.

“And that, of course, also led to the problem. So, I’m curious to see how he manages to convince another team that he’s the man who can restructure everything.”

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How has Christian Horner’s sacking impacted the future of other key Red Bull staff?

The most important person within the Red Bull Formula 1 set-up by far is Max Verstappen.

It’s yet to be seen whether Horner’s departure is going to make it more or less likely that the Dutchman moves on.

It was well known that Jos Verstappen and Horner didn’t see eye-to-eye, but Max’s relationship with his former team boss was always positive, at least in public.

Verstappen sent a message to Horner after the news broke, but whether he will be following him out the door is a question that’s yet to be answered.

Helmut Marko is expected to stay on after Horner’s departure, and while his role hasn’t changed in the aftermath, it will be interesting to see if he’s more or less involved in Red Bull’s decision-making process.