Red Bull’s settlement terms with former boss Christian Horner open the opportunity for a Formula 1 return next year – and it is one that he will likely grab with both hands.
Although what is understood to be a $100million pay-off to terminate his previous contract that ran until the end of 2030 means he never has to work again, Horner is not the sort of person who will walk off into the sunset never be seen again.
Sources suggest Horner still feels he has a lot to offer F1 and, having built up a Red Bull empire that he made into a dominant force in grand prix racing, the motivation is there to do it once again.
Horner had been prematurely linked with several teams since his dismissal. There were rumours of a Ferrari move that were snuffed out with a contract extension for incumbent team boss Fred Vasseur, while new team Cadillac shot down the idea publicly.
However, as Horner remained under contract at Red Bull, there hasn't actually been scope for any proper negotiations to begin about a new job.
Until he knew how restricted he would be when it came to any terms of gardening leave laid down, it would be a folly to try to think of next steps.
Now, however, Horner has clear vision of what and when he is allowed to do – with it understood that he is free to join one of Red Bull’s rivals in the early stages of next season.
The exact date of this is not known, but sources suggest it is sometime after the first flyaway races in Australia/China/Japan, but before the summer break.
The question on everyone’s lips though is - where will he end up?
With clarity of timing, Horner can now at least sit down and see what opportunities there are.
There seem to be two obvious places that may suit him best based on criteria that we know he demands of wanting total control of an operation and not just being a simple employee following orders.
One option could be Alpine, which is undergoing a revamp under executive advisor Flavio Briatore.
As the Enstone squad enters a new era with Mercedes customer power units, there are fresh opportunities – and Horner would be a good fit to come in to a senior role and get things lining up better.
He knows Briatore well, and the operation offers potential for a clean slate approach now that it has secured its freedom on the engine front, with Renault's F1 works effort shut down.
Briatore tried to play down links to Horner during a press conference at the Dutch GP, but his comments were very much a classic non-denial denial.
Asked if Horner was a possibility, Briatore said: “I'm not considering in this moment anything. Christian is not in Formula 1 in this moment anymore. I hope he comes back soon but, for the moment, he's not in the picture of Alpine."
At that "moment" Horner was indeed not available. He is now.
Another option could be Aston Martin, as Lawrence Stroll has shown no holding back when it comes to getting on board the best talent available from everywhere.
What role Horner could have would be complicated – because it already has a CEO and team principal in Andy Cowell.
But it is not impossible that there are bigger picture responsibilities there that suit him – and he becomes an addition to the senior management rather than replacing anyone.
But there is a third potential avenue that opens up – which makes complete sense, especially based on the timing of Horner not being allowed to return until after the 2026 season has started.
A lot of teams have thrown a lot of effort into next year’s projects, and promised big things to their boards because of it.
With an uncertain competitive picture, and the potential for some to have got it badly wrong, anyone who has under-delivered massively at the start of next season could find themselves in the crosshairs – especially with it known Horner is available and free.
And, perhaps of added interest, is that if Horner hasn’t agreed anything elsewhere by then, there would be no lengthy gardening leave needed before he could join.
Melbourne 2026 could mark the start of a team boss silly season.
