Williams Racing Formula One team principal James Vowles has revealed that he is open to talks with former Red Bull Racing chief Christian Horner, if he were approached by him. Horner’s Red Bull ouster after the British Grand Prix sent shockwaves across F1, and since then, he has been linked to several teams for a potential 2026 return.
Newsweek Sports recently reported how Horner walked away with a severance package worth around $100 million and that he will be allowed to return to F1 mid-next year. His reported links with Alpine, Cadillac F1, and Haas have made news, but there has been no sign of talks advancing to the next level.
Horner is interested in returning to the sport in the capacity of a team owner and not as a manager. Thus, a future partnership with teams eager for more capital cannot be ruled out, although Horner’s reported preference to control team operations could get in the way. When Vowles was asked during the press conference in Singapore if he was approached by Horner, he said:
“No. Simple.”
However, Vowles was not ruling out a discussion with Horner in case he was approached by the former Red Bull boss. He said:
“I think you should always welcome a conversation.
“There’s no point closing the door.”
But Vowles did make it clear that as of now, he does not want to make changes to the team’s structure. He said:
“We’re very happy with the structure that we have, and it’s working. So I don’t see any reason to make any changes to that.”
The speculation around Horner’s 2026 F1 return has been gaining traction, and according to Sky Sports F1’s Craig Slater, several business entities have been in touch with Horner who seek to enter the world of premier class racing. He said:
“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.
“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.”