Christian Horner hit with further blow to F1 comeback hopes by Flavio Briatore

Flavio Briatore has inflicted a further blow to Christian Horner's chances of landing a return to the Formula 1 grid. The Alpine chief is good friends with the Brit, who was axed last month as Red Bull team principal and chief executive after 20 years in charge.

But that relationship is not enough for Briatore, 75, to offer Horner an immediate route back into the sport. The 51-year-old has been linked with a possible future at the Renault-owned Alpine team, but its de facto team boss Briatore has poured cold water on those rumours.

The Italian said: "I'm not considering anything at this moment, and Christian is not in Formula 1 anymore. I hope he comes back soon but, for the moment, he's not in the picture at Alpine."

Briatore's comments come after similar rumours linking Horner with the new Cadillac F1 project were also shot down. Dan Towriss, chief executive of TWG Motorsport which operates the new American team, was blunt in his response to questions about a possible role for the former Red Bull boss.

He said: "There have been no talks with Christian Horner [and] no plans to do that. I'd like to officially shut down that rumour. Our support, belief and backing is 100 percent in [team principal] Graeme Lowdon."

Part of the reason for Horner's ousting at Red Bull is believed to have been because Austria-based chiefs felt the Brit held too much power. And if the Brit is to consider a return to F1 in the future, it is understood that he would want to be in total control of whichever project he joins.

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It has been claimed that Horner could look to invest in a team, which could potentially bring Alpine back into the equation. The suggestion that the former Red Bull chief could link up with Briatore and former F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone to all work together at the same team was a source of amusement for Mercedes boss Toto Wolff.

The Austrian said: "That would be an exciting story, I guess, and would create lots of buzz around Formula 1. I think we need that. Formula 1 has always been about the best racing with exciting drivers and great personalities.

"I feel that when you look back at the grand era of team owners and team principals – Frank Williams and Ron Dennis, Flavio, [Luca di] Montezemolo and a few others – maybe we need to work on that. If there was such an exciting project, these three guys coming together, all of the mafia reunited, that would give good content."

While French carmaker Renault is the majority owner of the Alpine team, 24 percent of the outfit is owned by investment company Otro Capital. Several star athletes each have stakes in the F1 team through that investment, including Masters golf champion Rory McIlroy, NFL superstar Travis Kelce and Real Madrid footballer Trent Alexander-Arnold.