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Helmut Marko has added another twist to the ongoing Lewis Hamilton vs Christian Horner saga with claims that the Red Bull boss had told him about the text he received from the driver's team. Horner's claim heading into the last race of the season in Abu Dhabi has caught the attention of everyone.
Horner claimed in a recent interview with the Daily Mail that Lewis Hamilton had approached Red Bull early in the season before he signed an extension with Mercedes. The comments caused quite a stir as if that had actually happened, it would be a massive indictment against Toto Wolff's team and his relationship with his star driver.
Since then, Lewis Hamilton has come out and flatly denied Horner's claims. There have even been choice words said about the Red Bull boss by Toto Wolff. In all of this, Helmut Marko has come out in Horner's defense, claiming that he had informed him about the approach from Hamilton's team.
In Marko's view, he knew it was legitimate because Hamilton demanded the same machinery as Max Verstappen. He told F1Insider:
“I can only say that Christian Horner told me in January about a text message he received from people around Hamilton. It seemed authorized by the driver, especially because there was talk of a condition that Hamilton set: he only wanted to drive for Red Bull if he got the same material as Max Verstappen. For me at least there was no doubt that the request from the Hamilton side was serious.”
Lewis Hamilton was never in consideration for a seat at Red Bull
Helmut Marko has said that Lewis Hamilton was never in consideration for a seat at Red Bull because having "two alphas" doesn't work and the team could not afford having the two most expensive drivers together. He said:
“There were never any considerations about letting Hamilton drive alongside Verstappen. Firstly, we are well positioned with our driver squad including Sergio Perez. Second, these two alphas wouldn't work on a team."
He added:
"And thirdly, the most important point: Red Bull cannot afford the two most expensive Formula 1 drivers together. But I can understand that a driver like Hamilton wants to drive in a team that promises the greatest success.”
At this moment, it will be interesting to see if there is another rebuttal from Lewis or he just lets the news pass.
