Ralf Schumacher does not think this is how a serious paddock negotiation is supposed to look.
Speaking on the Sky podcast Backstage Boxengasse on Tuesday, the German pundit accused Christian Horner of publicly touting himself for the Ferrari team principal seat currently held by Fred Vasseur, and dismissed the approach as amateur.
“Currying favour like that is embarrassing enough in itself,” Schumacher said.
“If he really had that interest, or Ferrari were seriously interested, you would never play it out this way. That’s why it’s simply a mark of incompetence.”
Horner, who left Red Bull in September 2025 after a negotiated settlement, told The Times earlier this month that Ferrari is the only F1 team he would return to without an ownership stake. He called the Scuderia “the sleeping giant” and “the dream”.
Vasseur: ‘Mr. Horner is looking for a job’
Vasseur, whose contract runs to the end of 2027, dismissed the speculation at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix weekend.
“Mr. Horner is looking for a job, everybody knows, everywhere,” the Frenchman told reporters, adding that half the questions he now faces are about his own future rather than the racing.
Schumacher praised the response and questioned openly whether any team in the current grid would actually take Horner on.
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‘It reflects his character, but it’s beneath contempt’
The sharper end of the criticism was personal. Schumacher accused Horner of settling scores with former Red Bull colleagues, including Adrian Newey, Helmut Marko and the Verstappen family, and disputed Horner’s version of how Max Verstappen was signed. According to Schumacher, it was Marko who actively pursued the teenage Verstappen, while Jos Verstappen felt his son was not yet ready.
“When you speak of style, Christian Horner is not the first name that comes to mind,” Schumacher said.
“It reflects his character, but it’s actually beneath contempt.”
He also recounted a paddock encounter in which, by his account, Horner was “almost shouting” at him and hinted between the lines at personal secrets. That, Schumacher said, was the behaviour of “a small street fighter”.
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A book and a tour to sell
Schumacher read the timing plainly. Horner has an autobiography and a UK speaking tour in the works, and in the German’s view the recent media offensive, from the Ferrari lobbying to the shots at old colleagues, is designed to move both.
“I think he knows there’s no way back for him,” Schumacher said.
His point on the interviews was that a team principal who genuinely expected another top job would not be conducting negotiations from a microphone.
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