Ferrari team boss Fred Vasseur. Image supplied by Ferrari

F1 Rumor: Ferrari eyes ‘super boss’ (Horner?) to oversee Vasseur

There have been rumors aplenty that Ferrari management is not happy with Fred Vasseur’s management of the Ferrari F1 team and that he could be replaced.

Christian Horner was previously courted by Ferrari. He is now available.

(GMM) Another secret of Ferrari’s 2025 woes may have just emerged.

A new floor debuted recently, and new rear suspension is slated to race for the first time at Spa, but an exasperated Charles Leclerc hinted at a more fundamental problem at the end of the British GP weekend.

“It’s not a balance issue; it’s not a grip issue,” he said. “I don’t want to go into details, but it’s just something very strange that we have to combat in the car.

“Especially at high speed, it makes it even more difficult. I hope we can solve it. I can’t go into details, I’m sorry.”

Team boss Frederic Vasseur was also giving nothing away.

“Charles also said he won’t disclose it,” said the Frenchman. “I have to follow team orders – I won’t disclose it.

“It can be fixed, but it’s true that we’re struggling with something.”

Sport1 believes the problem is related to the power steering system, which struggles to fully and consistently operate at high speed. Lewis Hamilton also said at Silverstone that “there are things with this car that we absolutely cannot carry over to next year”.

The latest rumblings come at a tricky period for Vasseur, after Ferrari CEO Benedetto Vigna admitted at Silverstone that he is currently “discussing” the team principal’s expiring contract.

Ferrari CEO Benedetto Vigna and Ferrari F1 boss Fred Vasseur

Corriere dello Sport points out that at recent races, Vasseur has been closely observed by Ferrari executives. “In Montreal it was Piero Ferrari,” the report began.

“In Austria it was (HR boss) Michele Antoniazzi, and at Silverstone it was Vigna.”

The newspaper believes Vigna’s idea is to tweak the leadership structure of the team by emulating the way the McLaren and Sauber-Audi teams are set up.

“Elkann would like to make Vasseur’s supervision permanent by appointing a super-boss to oversee him, replacing Zak Brown-Andrea Stella of Ferrari or Mattia Binotto-Jonathan Wheatley of Sauber,” Corriere dello Sport revealed.

“But Fred isn’t one to accept constraints, as he demonstrated at the beginning of 2023, when he asked (John) Elkann for full operational control and a free hand from CEO Vigna,” correspondent Fulvio Solms said.

“He got everything he wanted. So at this point, the Frenchman, with his full powers, is under discussion.”

When asked about the uncertainty at Silverstone, Vasseur said simply: “We have to negotiate, and that’s what we’re doing.”