Horner encouraged Hamilton move to Mercedes

Christian Horner has admitted that he played a key role in Lewis Hamilton’s shock switch from McLaren to Mercedes in 2013.

The British star had been with McLaren throughout his career but fell out of love with them as success continued to elude him, despite winning the title in 2008.

Red Bull boss Horner claims Hamilton wanted to drive for his team, but he pushed him in the direction of Mercedes, where he has won back-to-back titles.

"He was desperate to drive for the team,” he told F1 magazine.

“In 2012, he wanted to come and drive for us, but there was no way we could accommodate him while Sebastian was with us.

"Then before he signed for Mercedes, he was very keen to drive for Red Bull for 2013.

"The McLaren had been very competitive in 2011 and 2012 and I thought it would probably be better for us for him to be at Mercedes than McLaren.

"So in the event of us not being able to sign him, I encouraged Niki Lauda to sign him to weaken McLaren - not envisaging that Mercedes would become the absolute powerhouse they are today."

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