Red Bull rules out senior staff “hostage exchange” with Ferrari as part of Laurent Mekies deal

Christian Horner insists that Red Bull will not let go of its staff in exchange for Laurent Mekies.

Red Bull rules out senior staff “hostage exchange” with Ferrari as part of Laurent Mekies deal

Christian Horner, Laurent Mekies. Images via Twitter.

Red Bull and Ferrari are rumored to be in a tussle over F1 personnel. The energy drinks giant signed Ferrari Sporting Director Laurent Mekies to serve as Team Principal at Alpha Tauri. Although it is believed that the Italian team is ready for Mekies to go without a lengthy gardening leave. That is, only if Red Bull does the same for the engineers joining Maranello.

However, Red Bull Team boss Christian Horner dismissed such speculation. The 49-year-old affirmed that there is no crisis over such a hostage situation. As Red Bull is not considering letting go of some of its technical team in exchange for Mekies. Horner said, “Again, as usual, there’s plenty of speculation. Will there be a hostage exchange for Laurent Mekies? Well, we don’t have any hostages.”

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The Briton made it clear that there are no plans to allow its staff to join Ferrari in place of Laurent Mekies. Horner explained, “So, in terms of personnel moving to Ferrari, certainly at a senior or medium level there’s nothing planned.”

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Moreover, Christian Horner stated that the Red Bull personnel rumored to leave for Maranello have assured the team about continuing with them. He added, “Individuals that have been mentioned in connection with Ferrari came to see me last week and mentioned their disbelief in some of these rumors.”

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Christian Horner rules out any senior Red Bull members joining Ferrari

Christian Horner. Image via Red Bull.
Horner admits that staff can often jump ship in F1. Image via Red Bull.

The Red Bull Team Principal acknowledged that in F1, the staff often switch to different teams despite reassurances. He admitted, “But it’s Formula 1. That will inevitably happen.”

However, he clarified that none of the higher-ups at Milton Keynes would leave for Ferrari. Christian concluded, “But there’s no plans for any senior members of our team to be joining Maranello.”

Mekies is an integral part of Red Bull’s plan to overhaul its sister team, Alpha Tauri. The current team boss Franz Tost will leave the team at the end of 2023. Laurent is presently an influential figure at the Scuderia and the Italian team is not happy with his move. A deal to let Red Bull engineers leave for Maranello on lenient terms could’ve helped Milton Keynes secure Mekies at an early date for 2024.

Thus, it seems that Christian Horner is confident that Red Bull will not make such a compromise with Ferrari for Laurent Mekies. The 49-year-old believes his team members want to continue with Red Bull. But it also appears that Horner is prepared to see some of his personnel leave. As the Briton reckons it is an inevitable part of Formula 1.

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