Fearsome F1 team boss could ‘quickly’ lose his job before Fred Vasseur amid wretched season

Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur had to address a flurry of stories about his future at the Canadian Grand Prix last weekend. Vasseur was clearly angered by the speculation in Italy.

Speaking in the team principals’ press conference on Friday, Vasseur hit out at the ‘disrespectful’ coverage. He was particularly outraged that some of his staff had been targeted by name in the reporting.

The Frenchman said he couldn’t work out where the stories were coming from. Lewis Hamilton wholeheartedly backed Vasseur, as did his teammate Charles Leclerc.

One of the stories claimed that Vasseur only had three races to save his job. It was telling that Ferrari refused to dignify the story with a comment, but it’s worth noting that the 57-year-old is out of contract at the end of the season.

There hasn’t yet been any firm indication that he’s holding talks over a new deal, so the pressure is undoubtedly on to improve after Ferrari slipped to third in the constructors’ – nearly 200 points off the pace.

Vasseur isn’t the only team boss whose position has been questioned this season. There was some chatter that Red Bull were looking to move on from Christian Horner, but this has since cooled.

Flavio Briatore’s Alpine job is now at risk after Luca de Meo exit

Rather suddenly, it looks like another team boss is in even greater danger than Vasseur. Flavio Briatore doesn’t occupy the same role at Alpine, but he wielded a great deal of power as the advisor to Luca de Meo.

It’s thought that he was behind the decision to become a customer team for 2026, halting their works operation and buying Mercedes power units instead. On the driver front, he let Jack Doohan go after just six races in favour of winter signing Franco Colapinto.

In a dramatic development on Sunday evening, it was announced that De Meo was stepping down as Renault CEO next month. According to Auto Motor und Sport, this could spell trouble for Briatore.

Depending on the identity of De Meo’s replacement, ‘Briatore could quickly lose his job’.

The clear sign that Alpine staff are a little afraid of Flavio Briatore

Alpine are bottom of the constructors’ championship after another scoreless weekend in Montreal. With 11 points, they’re nine behind last year’s wooden-spoon-holders Sauber.

The early driver change has intensified the picture of chaos at Enstone under Briatore’s leadership. He would argue that he should be judged next year when Alpine take on their new identity.

The Daily Mail report that Alpine staff all sit up ‘a little straighter’ when Briatore enters the paddock facility. Even at 75, he still carries a fearsome reputation.

According to Ted Kravitz, De Meo’s exit could have ramifications for Alpine’s F1 future. There have already been whispers that the team could go up for sale.