Former Red Bull team principal Christian Horner secured a substantial severance package after being relieved of his duties in July.
Horner was removed earlier in the summer, but until Monday, the racing executive was negotiating his payoff. There are conflicting reports about the actual sum of money, though it is believed to be around $100 million.
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The British team leader spent 20 years at Red Bull Racing, building it from the ground up and developing it into the powerhouse that it has become.
He delivered eight drivers’ championships and six constructors’ championships during his two decades in charge of the team.
By all accounts, Horner took less money than he could have earned to expedite his potential return to the sport.
Per Craig Slater of Sky Sports F1, Horner can return to the grid as soon as next summer, and he is getting plenty of interest from outside parties who want to join F1.
“What I do know is a lot of big commercial entities, and we’re talking about blue-chip companies, sovereign wealth funds, big venture capital groups, have already been in touch with Christian Horner,” Slater said on the Sky Broadcast.
“Groups which want to get into F1 and Horner will now assess all these options. There are two ways of getting into F1 as a stakeholder: one is by buying a team, and then this other potential option of founding what would be the 12th and final team, which the current regulations allow for within the sport.
“That is a cheaper way. Cadillac have paid maybe half a billion pounds for certification to get on board. Yes, they’ll have to build up all the infrastructure, but it’s going to cost a minimum of a billion and a half to two billion pounds to buy an existing team.
“Against that, there’s always talk about Alpine perhaps diluting the stake. Could he buy a chunk of that business, perhaps with some venture capitalists? Audi bought the Sauber team; might they want to hive off a share of that? There’s been talk around that as well, so let’s see.”
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While Horner did bring a ton of scrutiny and negative perceptions to Red Bull, he is undoubtedly a great racing figurehead who knows what it takes to be successful.
There is no one more qualified than Horner, who is available to revolutionize a struggling team like Alpine or build a team from scratch. Figures like Horner do not come around often, and he should get the backing of investors to lead a racing project.