Ferrari’s senior management may already have reached a decision over Frédéric Vasseur’s future, according to growing speculation emerging from the Formula 1 paddock after the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. Reports suggest John Elkann and Benedetto Vigna could be preparing to turn the page after a difficult period for the Scuderia, although the identity of any possible successor remains far from settled.
Christian Horner is inevitably among the names being discussed, particularly after the former Red Bull team principal effectively opened the door to a possible move to Maranello. However, Antonello Coletta, Jérôme D’Ambrosio and even Andrea Stella have also entered the wider succession discussion.
Ferrari’s 2026 season has gone from hope to frustration
Ferrari have now gone five races and more than two months without a podium, comfortably the team’s longest sequence of disappointments during the 2026 season. That represents a sharp reversal from a campaign that, despite beginning under the shadow of Mercedes’ overwhelming early dominance, had briefly offered genuine reasons for optimism.
Lewis Hamilton’s convincing victory in Barcelona provided a major confidence boost, particularly because the circuit is traditionally regarded as one of Formula 1’s most complete tests of a car. Charles Leclerc then followed with a fortunate but far from accidental victory at Silverstone, while Ferrari also showed encouraging performance at Spa-Francorchamps. Those results appeared to offer a promising platform as Maranello waited for the much-anticipated ADUO-2 power unit development.
Instead, the momentum faded. Budapest and Zandvoort produced disappointing weekends on circuits that, at least on paper, were not dominated by engine performance and should therefore have allowed the SF-26 chassis to show more of its potential.
Monza then delivered an even greater setback. Tension between the drivers, driving errors and the disappointing impact of the power unit upgrade combined into a painful home weekend. The engine development did represent an improvement, but not enough to allow Ferrari to fight Mercedes at the front. Meanwhile, Mercedes continued to extend its advantage despite having introduced no major upgrades since Canada.
The wider decline has already led Lewis Hamilton to acknowledge how difficult Ferrari’s championship situation has become, with the seven-time world champion increasingly looking beyond the immediate campaign towards Ferrari’s longer-term 2027 challenge.
Tension grows around Frédéric Vasseur
The Monza disappointment, coming in front of Ferrari’s home supporters, was followed almost inevitably by a more tense atmosphere. Several exchanges between Frédéric Vasseur and Ferrari’s drivers could arguably have been avoided, with Lewis Hamilton in particular making clear that responsibility for the team’s difficulties also had to be recognised.
That dynamic has already raised questions over whether Lewis Hamilton and Frédéric Vasseur are becoming increasingly out of sync as pressure grows around the project.
The situation reached another level in Baku when Christian Horner publicly positioned himself as a possible candidate to lead Ferrari. The former Red Bull team principal has already made clear that he would be open to the challenge, with Christian Horner opening the door to Ferrari without demanding an equity stake.
John Elkann and Benedetto Vigna reportedly ready to make a change
The combination of disappointing results, internal tension and a changing competitive order has created what increasingly resembles a perfect storm at Maranello. Ferrari’s leadership had placed considerable expectations on the arrival of Lewis Hamilton and, after the first disappointment, on the sweeping 2026 technical regulations.
Now the picture looks very different. Mercedes remain well ahead, while Red Bull and McLaren have shown tangible progress. Ferrari therefore face the possibility of finishing the campaign effectively as Formula 1’s fourth force, a scenario that would have appeared extremely difficult to imagine when the season began.
The changing balance between Ferrari and the leading constructors can also be followed through the Ferrari vs F1 Rivals statistics, which provide a broader view of the Scuderia’s competitive position against Mercedes, McLaren and Red Bull.
According to numerous paddock rumours circulating in Baku, that decline may have convinced John Elkann and Benedetto Vigna that a new direction is required. Such a decision would carry an obvious risk. Removing Frédéric Vasseur could undo part of the structure already built and force Ferrari to begin another cycle, potentially extending the time required to return consistently to winning form.
The apparent reasoning, however, would be that Ferrari could start that new phase with a team principal in whom the leadership has greater confidence.
PlanetF1 report suggests Ferrari are preparing Vasseur’s exit
PlanetF1 journalist Thomas Maher has reported that Ferrari are preparing for Frédéric Vasseur to step aside, although the precise form of that change remains uncertain.
“It is not yet clear whether this means a change of role within the Ferrari organisation or a complete separation,” Thomas Maher reported.
The proposal for a change at the head of the Formula 1 team may already have been presented to Frédéric Vasseur or could even have been accepted by the 58-year-old. Thomas Maher also reported an unusual change in Frédéric Vasseur’s behaviour during recent strategic meetings concerning Formula 1 regulations and the championship’s future.
While representing Ferrari, Frédéric Vasseur is said to have remained unusually withdrawn and responded largely in monosyllables, a notable contrast with the jovial personality that paddock insiders and supporters have become accustomed to during his years at Maranello.
The latest rumours add to separate reports that Ferrari are considering how a Frédéric Vasseur succession could be managed without creating further disruption during the closing stages of the season.
Christian Horner is not Ferrari’s only option
The identity of a possible replacement remains much more open. Christian Horner would offer Ferrari something the team has rarely had in recent decades: a team principal arriving in Maranello with extensive experience of already winning championships. In that sense, his appointment would evoke the era of Jean Todt, while Christian Horner has also been approached by Ferrari management in the past.
However, PlanetF1 has noted that the timing of Christian Horner’s recent interview with The Times may simply be coincidental. A major newspaper interview of that length would normally require considerable preparation and may have been conducted a couple of weeks before the difficult Baku weekend rather than as an immediate reaction to Ferrari’s latest problems.
The name regarded as the leading candidate by some within the paddock is instead Antonello Coletta. The Italian manager has been one of the central figures behind Ferrari’s Le Mans success and is highly regarded internally.
There is one significant complication. Antonello Coletta had already been offered the opportunity to move towards Ferrari’s Formula 1 pit wall before Frédéric Vasseur received his multi-year contract extension in the middle of 2025. At the time, Antonello Coletta reportedly showed little enthusiasm for abandoning his established role across the World Endurance Championship and Ferrari’s Corse Clienti activities.
An internal promotion for Frédéric Vasseur’s deputy Jérôme D’Ambrosio is another possible route. Christian Horner nevertheless remains firmly in the conversation because of his record and because his willingness to join without demanding ownership in Ferrari would remove a major potential obstacle to negotiations.
Could Andrea Stella eventually return to Ferrari?
Another possibility has also returned to the discussion. Journalist Jacky Martens and photographer Kym Illman suggested on the Paddock Access podcast that Christian Horner could be the favourite to become Ferrari’s next team principal, with Frédéric Vasseur gradually moved towards the exit as part of a planned succession.
If the Christian Horner option does not materialise, one scenario discussed would involve appointing an interim team principal for a limited period while Ferrari attempt to convince Andrea Stella to take on the challenge and return to Maranello.
There is also no certainty that Christian Horner’s public Ferrari comments were aimed exclusively at the Scuderia. His interview with The Times could conceivably have been intended to increase pressure on another team with which he may be negotiating, something that would not be unprecedented.
For now, therefore, the succession remains unresolved. What appears increasingly clear after Baku is that Frédéric Vasseur’s position has become more uncertain, while Ferrari’s leadership faces another potentially defining decision over the direction of its Formula 1 project.
