Alpine might propose a stake in the team to Horner.

      "Briatore is in search of a strong new team principal."

      Christian Horner might indeed transition to Alpine, as suggested by former Formula 1 driver Ralf Schumacher. At 49, Schumacher has increasingly found himself at odds with Red Bull's team boss Horner, having consistently criticized the Brit over the past year. According to Germany’s Sport1, Horner even requested Sky Deutschland to remove Schumacher from his role as an expert pundit, although "the attempt failed," the report stated.

      It was not Schumacher who started the recent rumors in the paddock about Horner feeling increasingly sidelined by Red Bull’s owners, leading to speculation about a possible move to either Ferrari or Alpine. Horner dismissed the Ferrari rumors entirely. "My Italian is worse than Flavio (Briatore)’s English, so how on earth would that work?" he joked in Barcelona.

      However, Schumacher believes that the Horner-to-Alpine speculation makes more sense, especially since he has maintained a close relationship with Alpine advisor Briatore for many years. "Briatore is looking for a good new team boss," Schumacher commented, adding that he and Horner have mutual respect for one another.

      Schumacher posits that the key factor in the deal could be that Renault, the majority owner of Alpine, might offer Horner actual equity in the team. A similar arrangement between Adrian Newey and Aston Martin facilitated the designer's move from Red Bull last year. "That’s what he (Horner) has always wanted," Schumacher remarked when discussing the potential for Horner to receive equity in Alpine, "and he doesn’t have that opportunity at Red Bull.

      "He lacks that option anywhere else, which is why I can see him being quite interested." If Horner were to leave his current position, Schumacher has a clear suggestion for whom Red Bull should consider for his replacement. "If I were (Red Bull CEO) Oliver Mintzlaff, I would reach out to Andreas Seidl immediately and try to bring him on board," he mentioned about the German who was ousted from the new Audi-owned Sauber project last year.