Christian Horner's ideal first move if he were to be appointed as Ferrari team principal would not make Lewis Hamilton happy.
In what was undoubtedly the biggest story of the 2025 Formula One season, Red Bull Racing confirmed that Horner had been removed as team principal and CEO.
The 51-year-old had spent more than 20 years working at the F1 team, leading them to six constructors' championships and eight drivers' world titles, before being swiftly replaced by Laurent Mekies.
Since his departure, Horner has been linked with several different teams on the Formula One grid, with the latest reports suggesting that Ferrari is his most option as Ferrari president John Elkann is eager to appoint him as team principal.
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Although Horner's arrival at Ferrari would no doubt be seen as a great success for many at the team, it might not be good news for star driver Hamilton.
After agreeing a $100million (£74.56m) settlement with Red Bull last month, Horner is now able to pursue a future in the sport elsewhere, with the likes of Aston Martin, Ferrari, Alpine and Haas all tipped as options.
But according to a report from the Daily Mail, Ferrari could be the best option given his previous links to the team.
Ferrari were originally linked with Horner earlier this season, but ultiamtely ended up extending the contract of current team principal Fred Vasseur.
But now the links are heating up once again, and it is claimed that, should he get the job at Ferrari, Horner would immediately try to sign his former star driver Max Verstappen.
Despite winning four consecutive World Drivers' Championship titles with Red Bull, rumours throughout the season have suggested that Verstappen is strongly considering a future elsewhere.
And if he were to come to the Scuderia, it could be at the expense of Hamilton, who has struggled since joining Ferrari in a shock move at the start of the 2025 season.
Having won six F1 Drivers' Championship titles during a highly-successful 12 years with Mercedes, expectations were high ahead of Hamilton's arrival at Ferrari, but things haven't exactly gone to plan.
With just six race weekends left in the 2025 season, the 40-year-old is yet to win any of the main races, leading to reports that he was considering retiring at the end of the season.
Therefore, if Horner were to come in and bring Verstappen with him, it seems almost certain that he would do so at the expense of Hamilton rather than teammate Charles Leclerc, who has scored 48 more points so far this season.
Topics: Formula 1, Christian Horner, Ferrari, Lewis Hamilton, Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing
Ben McCrum