CHRISTIAN Horner's fate at Red Bull will reportedly be decided within 10 days - leaving the F1 boss potentially out of a job ahead of the season opener.
Horner, 50, is facing a formal investigation over controlling behaviour and sexting allegations made by a female staffer - which he hopes will end as "soon as possible".
Horner's future at the all-conquering team of world champion Max Verstappen still hangs in the balance after shock allegations of "inappropriate and controlling behaviour" were made by a female staffer.
But in recent days, fresh claims allege that Horner also sent the colleague "sexually suggestive" texts.
The embattled Red Bull chief strongly denies the allegations.
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Red Bull arrived in Bahrain on Tuesday evening for pre-season testing, with Horner still in his £8-million-a-year role .
So far, it has been '"business as usual" in the pit lane - the team principal's go-to phrase since news of the scandal broke.
However, results of the independent inquiry will reportedly be handed over to the Red Bull board in the next few days.
The probe threatens to overshadow the start of the new F1 season - but a final decision is expected before the opening Grand Prix race kicks off on March 2, the Mail reports.
Yesterday, he addressed the new bombshell sexting probe and declared he wanted a conclusion as "soon as possible".
He refused to comment directly on the allegations made against him during the press conference, stating "I cannot comment on the process or the time scale."
"I think everybody would like a conclusion as soon as possible but I am really not at liberty to talk about the process," he added.
The racing boss, who has led the Austrian team since its formation in 2005, was all smiles yesterday as he signed autographs, posed for selfies with fans and spoke to his drivers.
Other team principals have been calling for greater "transparency" in F1 in the wake of the scandal engulfing Red Bull.
Horner's nemesis in the pit lane, Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff described it as "an issue for all of Formula One", while Mclaren chief Zak Brown called the allegations "extremely serious".
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Brown hoped that they were being handled in a "very transparent way" and "swiftly" as "these are not the headlines that Formula One wants or needs."
Last week, he spoke publicly about the allegations for the first time as he made an appearance at the recent RB20 launch event.
He said: “Inevitably there has been a distraction, but the team are very together.
“Everybody’s focused on the season ahead, so it’s been very much business as normal and the support has been fantastic.
“In situations like these, you see where the strengths are, and it’s been overwhelming the support that I’ve had from within the team.
“There have been some allegations made, which I fully deny, so that the investigation is very much going on in the background whilst preparing for the season ahead, and hopefully it will be concluded in the near future.”
And in one interview, he praised his Spice Girl wife Geri Halliwell and said: "I have a very supportive family and a very supportive wife."
Halliwell, 51, is understood to be standing firmly by her husband, who she married in 2015.
She was allegedly reduced to tears when news of the scandal broke - but privately insisted he did nothing wrong.
Last weekend, she was pictured smiling alongside by her husband at a horse racing event in Badbury Rings, Dorset.
Red Bull has won seven Formula One world drivers’ championships and six world constructors’ titles under Horner's leadership.
Last season, the team won 21 of the 22 races on the global F1 tour, and Verstappen, 26, won the drivers’ crown.
Horner was awarded a CBE for services to motor sport in the 2024 New Year’s Honours List.
