Christian Horner speaks out as Red Bull poach Lewis Hamilton’s former Mercedes engineer

Christian Horner has spoken out after Red Bull poached Lewis Hamilton’s former engineer Phil Prew from Mercedes. The Austrian team have been in imperious form on the track this season and are leading the Constructors’ Championship by 97 points, with Max Verstappen also at the top of the Drivers’ Championship standings.

Red Bull have been uncompromising in their recruitment drive recently as they look to become the powerhouse in F1 for years to come. And Horner believes Prew’s arrival is a “statement of intent.”

He said: “I’m delighted that Phil is going to be joining the team and he has a phenomenal track record. He has been a key component of Mercedes’ recent success and, again, it is another statement of intent of where we want to be with the power unit.

“I think we have assembled great strength and depth within the business and it’s fantastic to see it really coming together and coming to life. Phil’s one of a few key signings recently that add to the very talented group of people that we have already assembled.”

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Prew is set to take a leading role on Red Bull’s work on their future power units. The energy drink giants currently have a deal in place for Honda to make their engines until the end of the 2025 season. The Red Bull engines are likely to be outsourced once again when that deal expires, with Porsche in the frame to take over. And Prew’s expertise will be needed to ensure Red Bull get the product they are looking for.

And Horner has already stated that he believes his team are in a good place behind-the-scenes. “I think that things are really taking shape,” he said at the Hungarian Grand Prix. “You can see in Milton Keynes we’ve gone from being a few units on an industrial estate to being a technology campus. The investment by the group has been significant. The first engine is due to fire up shortly. It’s been a steep learning curve but we’ve recruited some phenomenal talent.”