Jeremy Clarkson supported Christian Horner.

      Jeremy Clarkson, the most popular British TV presenter, drew a parallel between his own scandalous departure from the BBC and the situation faced by Christian Horner.

      Clarkson was fired from the BBC after an altercation with Oisin Taimon, a producer of Top Gear, which ended in assault. The scandal received wide publicity and allowed the corporation to terminate his contract, leading to a sharp decline in ratings and the gradual demise of the once globally successful show.

      Jeremy, however, only benefited from this, as he immediately signed a multi-million-pound contract with Amazon, and the famous trio—Clarkson, James May, and Richard Hammond—began a new project, The Grand Tour, which was instantly loved by the public.

      In 2016, the first season of this show broke all popularity records, and now Clarkson is producing Clarkson’s Farm, a fascinating documentary series about his farm. In other words, a story that could have marked the end of his career has instead become the beginning of a new, even more successful chapter. He wishes the same for Horner.

      “After the news of his dismissal, I sent Christian a text message, emphasizing that I was once in the same position,” Clarkson shared in his usual column in the tabloide The Sun. “I explained to him that when you wake up the next morning, you can easily think, ‘Well, that’s it then.’ But in my case, it was different.

      I didn’t step on a snake, but on the first rung of the ladder leading upward. I bet he’ll do the same.

      Last Sunday, I spent some time with Christian, and it was obvious that at that moment, nothing foreshadowed looming trouble. He was with Olivia, his 11-year-old daughter, whose mother recently died of eye cancer. Most of our conversation was about that and how the little girl is coping with her grief.

      Many are now betting that Horner will move to Alpine, but next year that team will receive Mercedes engines. That means Christian will have to work with Toto Wolff, the head of Mercedes. But since those two don’t get along, I don’t think events will develop along those lines.

      Next year, Audi and Cadillac will join Formula 1, and there are rumors of Chinese interest as well. And all of them will surely be eager to take the opportunity to acquire Horner. As for Red Bull Racing, let’s remember what happened to Manchester United when Sir Alex Ferguson left. In this context, a once-great team could very well end up in Formula 4 in just a couple of years.