Christian Horner: Ross Brawn can be the saviour of Formula One

Horner believes Brawn is an ideal candidate to be appointed as an independent adviser to rewrite the sport’s over-complicated rule book in which the skill of overtaking has become a scarcity.

Horner was speaking after an Austrian Grand Prix that witnessed a 40 percent drop in attendances with the sporting public tuning out of a sport that has been blighted by some drab and predictable races.

Horner has been an outspoken critic of the strategy group placed in charge of Formula One, and believes former Benetton and Ferrari technical director Ross Brawn would be the man to bring excitement back to the sport.

“I think the strategy group is fairly inept,” said Horner. “Maybe you need an independent observer, someone not involved... someone like Ross Brawn who understands the challenges and knows the business to write a specification for what a car or technical regulations should be.”

Sauber team principal Monisha Kaltenborn has accused Horner of double standards after dominating the sport for so long.

"Whenever you have a dominating team that team always tries something to strengthen their position," said Kaltenborn.

"To a certain extent even if Red Bull comes today and complains they are very much part of this problem and they are the ones that have to take the responsibility for certain technical regulations that could or could not be adopted because they were against it. So it is not that easy to say now that they should bring in someone else just because it doesn’t suit them.

"They have been, after all, the team that for four years that dominated the sport. As an independent team we have always said that you have to have a different set of rules that is not just decided or influenced so heavily by the team that is dominating. And that is the same now, if you have dominated before you have to understand why would another team that is dominating today want to give up their position unless they look at the bigger picture."

There is little doubt that Formula One is needing some major modifications to make it a more exciting sport. The perception of F1 is one of a sport that is dominated by machine rather than man. You could be the best driver in the world, but without the best car you are nowehre in the sport. One does question Horner's timing. You heard little complaints from him when Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull were winning races for fun. Better late than never. And a figure like Brawn would appear to be a suitable candidate having enjoyed success with his own team Brawn GP that clinched the Constructors' Championship when Jenson Button became world champion in 2009. Interestingly enough, another period of dominance that was decried as being too boring and predictable.