Christian Horner has revealed that Lewis Hamilton’s representatives touched base with Red Bull earlier this year to inquire about the latter’s interest in the Briton’s services.
Last August, Hamilton and Mercedes announced a new two-year deal that put to rest months of speculation regarding the seven-time world champion’s future.
During that period, Hamilton repeatedly said that he had no intention of leaving his surrogate family and that a new deal was just a question of settling some minor details, a narrative also recited by Mercedes F1 boss Toto Wolff.
Yet it has now come to light that Hamilton’s allegiance to the Brackley squad was perhaps not as solid as he claimed it to be.
Or perhaps that the Briton’s management was keen on approaching other teams as a bargaining ploy with Mercedes while also remaining on top of any potential opportunities of interest as part of keeping its options open.
"We have had several conversations over the years about Lewis joining," Horner revealed in an interview with the Daily Mail.
"They have reached out a few times. Most recently, earlier in the year, there was an inquiry about whether there would be any interest."
Horner also claimed that Hamilton had held talks with Ferrari, an assertion alluded to by the Briton in the past.
"He met John Elkann [Ferrari chairman], too. I think there were serious talks," said Horner.
"It was around Monaco (in May). There were definitely conversations, perhaps with Vasseur, too. But certainly with Elkann.”
Regarding Red Bull’s tentative talks with Hamilton, Horner admitted, as he has before, that he could not envisage a scenario that would see Max Verstappen and Hamilton working together in perfect harmony at Red Bull.
"But I can't see Max and Lewis working out together,” he said. “The dynamic wouldn't be right. We are 100 per cent happy with what we have."
As for Verstappen, asked about Horner’s disclosure, the Dutchman saw no reason for him to comment on an event that will never come to pass.
“What would it add to know? I don’t know, it’s not happening,” he said in Abu Dhabi. “There’s no point to make up stories if it’s not happening.
“I wouldn’t mind, doesn’t matter, anyone [as a team-mate]. I don’t want to put it particularly on Lewis, there’s so many great drivers. So yeah, sometimes it doesn’t work out.”
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