Christian Horner Fuels VCARB Driver Rumors As He Is Spotted Leaving Rival Motorhome

Christian Horner was seen leaving Williams' motorhome, heightening speculation that driver Franco Colapinto may join Red Bull's VCARB team next season.

Christian Horner, Team Principal of Oracle Red Bull Racing, speaks at the Red Bull Fan Zone, a private event at Oracle headquarters, on Wednesday October 18, 2023. / Jay Janner/American-Statesman / USA TODAY NETWORK

Rumors of a potential move of Williams's Franco Colapinto to VCARB in 2025 have been further fueled as Red Bull chief Christian Horner was spotted leaving the British team's motorhome after the first practice session in Brazil.

The 21-year-old driver has made his mark on the F1 paddock after he took Logan Sargeant's spot at Williams. However, as the Grove-based squad has already confirmed Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz for 2025, Colapinto is now looking to secure a spot in either of the two remaining unconfirmed seats at VCARB and Sauber.

Colapinto discussed his options for next year with the media ahead of the race weekend at the Interlagos track. He explained:

“Well, I think I shouldn’t be the person asked about that.

“Of course, I don’t know the answer… I guess, yes, I think if Williams cannot give me a race seat, I think the normal thing is that they allow me to go somewhere else, and find the best opportunity for me for the future.

“But I’m not the right person to be asked. I should be the last one. I’m here with Williams this weekend, and I’ll try to do my best here in Brazil – it’s a very exciting race, a great atmosphere.

“I cannot wait to be driving the Williams around Interlagos.

“I think, for the future, it will be great that it happens. I thought I was not going to be racing in F1 next year, and that’s still my first view. So I don’t really get too excited about whatever is there talking around. But, yeah, let’s see.”

Liam Lawson has recently replaced Daniel Ricciardo at VCARB for the rest of the season. The team is now rumored to be assessing both Lawson and his teammate Yuki Tsunoda for the next four races to determine who could potentially replace the under-performing Sergio Perez at Red Bull. If this is true, it would open up a spot at VCARB, which is where Colapinto could potentially come in.

When questioned about the potential interest in Colapinto, Horner responded:

"I would be a bad team boss if I didn't find out whether he was available."

2024 F1 Drivers' Championship: Current Standings

1. Max Verstappen - 362 points
2. Lando Norris - 315 points
3. Charles Leclerc - 291 points
4. Oscar Piastri - 251 points
5. Carlos Sainz - 240 points
6. Lewis Hamilton - 189 points
7. George Russell - 177 points
8. Sergio Perez - 150 points
9. Fernando Alonso - 62 points
10. Nico Hulkenberg - 31 points
11. Lance Stroll - 24 points
12. Yuki Tsunoda - 22 points
13. Kevin Magnussen - 14 points
14. Alex Albon - 12 points
15. Daniel Ricciardo - 12 points
16. Pierre Gasly - 9 points
17. Oliver Bearman - 7 points
18. Franco Colapinto - 5 points
19. Esteban Ocon - 5 points
20. Liam Lawson - 2 points
21. Zhou Guanyu - 0 points
22. Logan Sargeant - 0 points
23. Valtteri Bottas - 0 points