Two authoritative F1 correspondents have identified Christian Horner as the ideal man to take charge of the sport’s future.
Writing in the British newspaper The Times, Kevin Eason said F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone "must start to hand over — now."
The call comes amid a near-unprecedented round of introspection for the pinnacle of motor racing, as audiences decline, small teams falter and the stakeholders wonder how to recapture the ’heyday’ of formula one.
Eason said the F1 of today, run by 84-year-old Ecclestone, is "not ready to move into the 21st century with the rest of us".
"But it has to sooner rather than later.
"And the man he (Ecclestone) should hand over to should be Christian Horner. Take him out of Red Bull and give him the keys. Horner is young, smart, modern and in touch," added Eason.
Jonathan McEvoy, the correspondent for another British newspaper, the Daily Mail, also thinks 41-year-old Horner is the right man for the job.
"It is an intelligent, preferably young, energetic, articulate, successful, fair-minded dictator the sport needs to replace this Horlicks of self-interest," he wrote.
"Horner has proved during his stewardship of Red Bull that he has these qualities.
"Anointing Horner may yet be Ecclestone’s last great legacy to formula one," McEvoy added.