Hamilton Hits Back At Horner Amid Claims About Contacting Him About Red Bull Seat

Thursday, 23 November 2023 at 22:00

Updated at Friday, 24 November 2023 at 11:42

Lewis Hamilton denied that he had approached Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Horner to inquire about a seat in the team for the 2023 F1 season.

It's been two years since the seven-time World Champion last stood on the top step of the podium, and the Mercedes driver is certainly eager to get back to winning ways.

According to the team principal of the 2023 World Constructors' Championship winners, Red Bull, the British driver wanted to be part of the team for this season, as he has reportedly inquired about the possibility of joining the team ahead of the season.

However, ahead of the 2023 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, which is the last race of the 2023 F1 season, Hamilton has denied that he reached out to Horner, saying that the two have not spoken for a very long time.

"I’ve not approached Christian; I haven’t spoken to Christian for years and no one from my team has. I’ve checked with everyone, no one from my team has reached out to him."

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On the contrary, the British driver claims that it was Horner who had reached out to him, saying that he had denied the meeting and indirectly told the 50-year-old team principal that he wanted to challenge his team in his Mercedes.

"However, he had reached out to me about meeting up at the end of the season. And I was like, ‘I hope you are well; I wish you all the best, congratulations on an amazing season so far, and I hope that I am able to compete with you in the near future.'"

It's an interesting situation, as both made different claims and in the coming days, questions will certainly be forwarded to Horner, asking to clarify his previous comments based on Hamilton's claims.

As for the British driver, he will focus on the last race of the season at the Yas Marina Circuit, a race track that brought him the biggest heartbreak in his career when he lost the Championship battle to Max Verstappen in 2021.

This year, Hamilton will be focusing on joining forces with his teammate George Russell in an attempt to beat Scuderia Ferrari to second place in the World Constructors' Championship.

"I am definitely excited for the battle. Don’t know what we will be able to achieve, Ferrari are often quite quick here but I’m definitely quite hopeful."