Christian Horner 'not an option' as F1 team boss set to be replaced after just two races
Christian Horner has been out of work since leaving Red Bull in September last year, but a potential vacancy is not poised to see him return to F1.
Aston Martin are reportedly looking into replacing Adrian Newey as Team Principal after just two races of the 2026 Formula 1 season. However, it is said that former Red Bull boss Christian Horner is not an option to replace him.
The Green Machine have endured a nightmare start to the new season under former Red Bull chief technical officer Newey. Drivers Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll are yet to score a point after races in Australia and China, with both racers failing to finish last time out in Shanghai.
There were even doubts over whether Aston Martin would even be able to take part in the opening race of the season in Melbourne earlier this month. This was due to two of the four battery packs supplied by Honda for the race weekend developing faults after just the first hour of on-track running in FP1.
Speaking bluntly about the tricky situation Aston Martin are in, as engine reliability problems continue to undermine their performance, Newey suggested that a lack of F1 experience among Honda's workforce has been a significant contributory factor to their problems.
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He said: "They re-entered with let's say only, I'm guessing, 30 per cent of their original team and now in a budget cap era. So they started very much on the back foot and unfortunately they've struggled to to catch back up."
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And reports in SoyMotor now claim that Newey's position at Aston Martin is now under-threat after their poor start to the season. They claim there is 'a great deal of tension, nervousness, and disappointment' at the team and add this is 'combined with the aforementioned lack of leadership.'
It is therefore claimed that Aston Martin is 'actively searching for a new team principal to take the lead in management and public relations'. However, this does not mean Newey will be sacked, but instead expected to be moved into a different role within the team.
Aston Martin's next chance to register their first points of the season will come in Japan a week on Sunday.
An Aston Martin spokesperson said: "These reports are rumour and speculation. Aston Martin Aramco F1 Team remains fully committed to Adrian Newey as Managing Technical Partner & Team Principal."
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