Toto Wolff believes Christian Horner has already broken “a lot of glass” as he contemplated the former Red Bull boss making a return to Formula 1.
Horner, who was at the helm of the Milton Keynes-based outfit for two decades, was relieved of his duties as CEO and Team Principal, last July.
The Briton was under immense pressure since his ‘inappropriate behaviour’ fiasco in early 2024, and the RB21’s competitive issues last season served as the final nail in the coffin for the upper echelons of Red Bull’s management.
Since his shock dismissal, however, Horner has been tirelessly plotting a way back into the sport.
Having learned his lesson the hard way, the 52-year-old is seeking a more secure way into the paddock again – this time as a part owner, with a group of investors keen to finance his comeback.
If he succeeds, Horner would potentially reignite his rivalry with Wolff, who have traded a sum total of 10 titles between each other since the turn of the turbo-hybrid era.
But imagining such a scenario puts the Mercedes boss “in two minds”.
“I am in two minds about it,” he told the Press Association when asked about a potential Horner reunion.
“The sport is missing personalities. And his personality was clearly very controversial and that is good for the sport.
“I said to Fred Vasseur that it needs the good, the bad, and the ugly. And it is now only the good and the ugly left. The bad is gone.
“He has broken quite a lot of glass, and these things have repercussions in our microcosm. When you say things… but that is what he has done all his life, and that is what he knows best.”
Toto Wolff denies blocking Christian Horner Alpine buyout
In the months after Horner’s Red Bull sacking, the Briton was rumored to be making a ploy to buy a minority stake in Alpine.
The Anglo-French marque is currently held, by way of a minority shareholding, by investment firm Otro Capital who are willing to part ways with its stake in the team.
That said, no sooner was this news picking credence, Wolff emerged as a firm candidate to steal this particular piece of the pie from Horner.
And while Wolff has conceded to the fact that he, and in turn Mercedes, are looking at the possibilities of acquiring a share in Alpine, he insisted it has nothing to do with blocking Horner’s ploy to enter F1 again.
“Us looking at that stake is in no connection with Christian,” Wolff asserted.
“And the idea that there is a rivalry between Christian and me around who buys an Alpine stake is made up.
“It would be quite sad if that was a consideration of doing such an investment or not.
“We are looking at it from different angles, and we haven’t come to any conclusions. We want to know whether it makes sense.”
Alpine boss Flavio Briatore has also confirmed that the interest is from Mercedes as group and not Wolff acting alone. In fact, the team’s decision to ditch its works Renault engine project to become a Mercedes customer outfit has aligned such a possibility.
This, however, would mean that Horner’s impending return to the paddock may have been delayed indefinitely.
READ MORE – The ‘s**t sandwich’ Christian Horner was handed with Red Bull dismissal
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