Toto Wolff thumbs-up to a Horner–Briatore–Ecclestone Alpine power play: “All of the mafia reunited”
Only Formula 1 could throw up a rumor like this and keep a straight face. Days after Red Bull abruptly ended Christian Horner’s two-decade reign, the paddock whisper turned into a full-blown thought experiment: what if Horner teamed up with Flavio Briatore and Bernie Ecclestone at Alpine?
Mercedes boss Toto Wolff, never shy of a headline, would like to subscribe to that newsletter.
“Well, that would be an exciting story, I guess!” Wolff said when presented with the theory during the Dutch Grand Prix team principals’ press conference. “And would create lots of buzz around Formula 1, and I think we need that.”
Wolff, once Horner’s fiercest sparring partner on the pit wall, leaned into the larger point: F1 has always thrived on outsized characters as much as outrageous lap times.
“Formula 1 has always been about the best racing, with exciting drivers and great personalities,” he added, name-checking the era of Frank Williams, Ron Dennis, Flavio Briatore and Luca di Montezemolo as the template. “And if there was such an exciting project, these three guys coming together, all of the mafia reunited, that will give good content, I guess.”
The visual writes itself: Ecclestone, the sport’s former ringmaster; Briatore, now Alpine’s executive adviser and de facto team boss; and Horner, freshly ousted, parked in the same hospitality suite plotting a turnaround. Toss in the fact that Mercedes is slated to supply Alpine’s power units from 2026 and the political geometry gets even spicier. Wolff sending engines to a Briatore-led operation with Horner in the building? Deliciously awkward. In other words, so very Formula 1.
Of course, the sizzle is half the meal in silly season, and this one might not even make the pan. Briatore, seated a few chairs from Wolff in that same press conference, moved smartly to stamp out the bonfire before it spread through Enstone.
“I’m not considering anything at this moment, and Christian is not in Formula 1 anymore,” he said. “I hope he comes back soon, but for the moment he’s not in the picture at Alpine.”
That’s a clear “no—for now.” And it’s consistent with what Horner himself said even before his exit: he batted away talk linking him to Alpine and Ferrari. Still, the vacuum left by Red Bull’s decision after the British Grand Prix was always going to get filled with conjecture. Horner was Red Bull Racing’s constant for 20-plus years, the frontman and lightning rod as the team went from newcomers to serial champions. Remove that, and the grid’s rumor economy goes into overdrive.
Wolff knows the value of that energy. He’s campaigned for a sport that’s both technically elite and dramatic enough to cut through a crowded sports calendar. On that front, the idea of Horner, Briatore and Ecclestone aligning under one roof is pure box office. And Wolff’s right about something else: F1’s golden ages tend to have towering figures up and down the pit lane. The cars change, the regulations change, but the stories are special when the protagonists are too.
Whether Alpine is the stage for the next act is another matter. The team has Briatore steering its reset and, as ever, a complex to-do list on performance, structure and direction. Add the potential 2026 engine shift and there are already enough plates spinning. Slotting Horner into that would either be the masterstroke or the circus tent—there’s not much middle ground.
For now, the principals have set their lines. Wolff is “all for the buzz.” Briatore is all business. Horner is off the grid, officially, albeit not likely for long.
And that’s probably the real headline. F1 has a way of recycling its lead characters. If Horner wants back in—and few doubt he does—there will be a door somewhere. Maybe not Alpine. Maybe not now. But in a paddock that loves a plot twist, don’t be shocked if that “exciting story” Wolff teased finds a home sooner rather than later.
