Red Bull boss Christian Horner has suggested that Lewis Hamilton’s Formula 1 switch to Ferrari in 2025 could prove to be an “inspired” one similar to his Mercedes switch.
Hamilton stunned the F1 world with the announcement earlier this month that he will be departing Mercedes at the end of this year to pursue a new venture with Ferrari.
The Briton’s impending move to Maranello will end his long-serving association with Mercedes, where he has become a seven-time champion and won 82 races to date.
Horner admits that the bombshell news came as a shock to him but believes that the sport will benefit from the sport’s most successful driver and team being aligned.
He has also compared the choice to when Hamilton opted to leave a regular race-winning McLaren squad for a Mercedes side with one victory since its F1 return in 2010.
“First of all I think everybody was surprised – probably even his existing team – about Lewis’ move to Ferrari, but he’s obviously seen something there that he believes in that serves him better than staying where he is,” Horner told media including Motorsport Week at Red Bull’s 2024 car launch. “I think for Formula 1, a Lewis-Ferrari tie-up is really exciting.
“Obviously he’s got still a season to go with his existing team but he’s proven in the past that he’s not shy of making brave decisions.
“His move from McLaren to Mercedes [in 2013] for all intents and purposes looked not to be the right one at the time but proved to be an inspired one.
“I’m sure he will have thought about it long and hard, and for Formula 1 a Hamilton-Ferrari tie-up is pretty exciting.”
Meanwhile, Sergio Perez has hinted that the upcoming season could prove a tough one for Hamilton and Mercedes to navigate as the former’s Ferrari transfer edges closer.
Asked about what he made of the blockbuster revelation, Perez added: “Interesting, but more than that the dynamics are going to be interesting to watch from the outside.
“Having a driver who is going to be moving teams, you know how jealous the teams are on sharing information because Lewis has been many years there and he will be taking a lot of knowledge to another team. So yeah, that will be some interesting dynamics to watch from the outside.”
However, Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff had clarified once the news was confirmed that he had trust in Hamilton’s “integrity” to not share critical information.
“I think what I have always tried to do as a Team Principal and all of us at Mercedes is to be transparent and fair and nothing will change in that respect in 2024,” Wolff told selected media including Motorsport Week.
“We owe it to our principles and our racing intent – how we go about – and we will respect that. And I’m sure the drivers will respect that.”
“In terms of the development going forward, I think it’s something we have to look at.
“The regulations stay pretty much the same and when it comes to 2025, we will evaluate later in the season what it means in terms of technical information, but it is not something that bothers me at all.
“We have engineers who leave to go to other teams, and the notice periods are sometimes as short as six months, so I don’t have any doubt in terms of Lewis’ integrity in terms of sharing information.
“We want to make sure this is a successful season for both drivers and a successful season for Mercedes. All of us will give our utmost to achieve that.”
