Ferrari are finding the void left by Mattia Binotto’s resignation more difficult to fill than they would have anticipated.
The Scuderia have reportedly chosen to hire from the outside, with the team seeing in counterproductive to promote someone from within who played a part in their recent shortcomings.
Alfa Romeo’s Fred Vasseur was the supposed favourite for the role, with a move from Alfa Romeo to Ferrari being an easy one due to the links between the teams, however German media outlets have reported that Vasseur has turned down the opportunity to join Ferrari in favour of staying with his current team.
It has also been reported that Andreas Seidl of McLaren and Christian Horner of Red Bull have been approached with regards to the team principal role at Ferrari, with the latter being quick to shut down any suggestions that he might jump ship.
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“My commitment is very much with the Red Bull team,” claimed Horner.
“I’ve been there since the beginning and obviously have a very close attachment.”
Red Bull are the current holders of the constructors’ and drivers’ championships, which would have made a move to Ferrari seem like a step down for Horner, should have chosen to take Ferrari up on their offer.
It had been reported that the Scuderia’s proposal would have included a major increase on Horner’s current wage, but his commitment to Red Bull remained unchanged.
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Ferrari had previously issued a statement rubbishing claims that they were looking to replace Binotto as team principal, however only days later the Swiss decided to hand in his resignation to the team, with Binotto now set to depart Ferrari at the end of the calendar year.
The pressure had been mounting on the Swiss as aa result of Ferrari’s underwhelming 2022 season, where errors mainly by Binotto and his team saw Ferrari and Charles Leclerc fall out of contention for both championships.
Leclerc and Binotto were said to not even been on speaking terms come the end of the season in Abu Dhabi, meaning that the writing was on the wall for the team principal as Formula 1 entered the winter break ahead of the 2023 campaign, where Ferrari will be expected to challenge Red Bull under their new management, whoever that may be.