Ahead of the season finale in Abu Dhabi, Lewis Hamilton treated the Formula 1 grid to an expensive dinner in honour of Sebastian Vettel’s retirement.
Alex Albon and Lando Norris have both been quick to heap praise on the 37-year-old’s idea, claiming that it was an evening full of stories and laughter, with the drivers getting to experience a friendly experience with each other away from the racetrack, which they rarely get the opportunity to do.
Christian Horner was asked in a recent interview whether he could see the team principals of the paddock taking part in a similar evening, to which he suggested the odds are slim.
“Unfortunately, the same amount of love isn’t shared around the team principals, as the driver,” claimed the Red Bull boss.
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Horner then went on to poke fun at Max Verstappen, joking that the Dutchman has gone a little overboard with luxuries that come with travelling around the globe.
“Of course Max, having won the drivers’ and the constructors’ championships with a couple of races to go – they’re a little but like jockeys where they have to come in under a certain weight, and we saw that weight starting to creep up a little, through the steakhouses in Austin and the taquerias in Brazil,” he joked.
“He’ll be back on weight, I’m sure, by the time he gets back in the car in February next year.”
Formula 1 is famous for its ‘silly season’, where drivers often cause a domino effect by leaving a team, forcing replacements to be lined up by multiple teams are their own drivers are poached.
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This year will be no different with regards to team principals, as Ferrari are reportedly looking to headhunt their Mattia Binotto replacement from another team, following the Swiss’ decision to resign from the Scuderia at the end of the year.
Fred Vasseur of Alfa Romeo is Ferrari’s reported replacement of choice, while Christian Horner of Red Bull and Andreas Seidl of McLaren have already turned down the opportunity to switch allegiances to Ferrari.
It remains to be seen whether Ferrari will test the resolve of any other team principals in the paddock, or if they will turn to the likes of Laurent Mekies and promote from within, as is Ferrari tradition.