Christian Horner has claimed he was offered the Mercedes team principal job before Toto Wolff landed the role in 2013. The former Red Bull chief detailed the proposal in his new book, Drive, which is released on Thursday, October 22.
Lauda's Offer to Horner
The 52-year-old, who guided Red Bull to six constructors' titles and eight driver world championships, recalled how Niki Lauda approached him during the Christmas break after the 2012 Singapore Grand Prix. According to Horner, Lauda's thumbs-up at that race indicated Mercedes had signed Lewis Hamilton, before the offer to work alongside the British driver followed.
“Maybe our interactions over Lewis had stuck with him because later that year, during the Christmas break, Niki came to my house and asked me to join Mercedes as his team principal,” Horner wrote. “I was caught off guard. Leaving Red Bull had never crossed my mind. When he then laid out a series of dazzling numbers, I realised he was discussing my potential salary.”
Horner's Decision to Stay
Horner recalled Lauda telling him: “'Red Bull will never pay you what Mercedes can,’ he said. ‘I respect you as a racer. I want you to come. Besides, Helmut is a miserable b******.’ I listened to his offer and shook my head.”
The 52-year-old opted to stick with Red Bull and was immediately rewarded as Sebastian Vettel retained his title in 2013. Horner's decision led the German team to hire then-Williams chief Wolff as team principal that January.
“At that point, Sebastian was at the peak of his powers and Red Bull were in the ascendancy,” Horner said, explaining his decision. “‘Niki, I’ve been winning World Championships with Red Bull,’ I said. ‘I’ve built everything from scratch. I feel a loyalty to Dietrich and the team. So as much as I appreciate this, I’m not going to join Mercedes.’”
Wolff and Hamilton's Rise
Although Red Bull enjoyed success that year, Wolff and Mercedes were soon in the ascendancy, with the Austrian helping guide the team to eight consecutive constructors’ championships and seven driver titles. Meanwhile, Horner came to regret pushing Lauda to sign Hamilton as the driver claimed six of seven world championships from 2014 until 2020.
Recalling his initial thoughts on Wolff and Hamilton joining Mercedes, Horner said: “Their union was interesting but seemingly inconsequential. In my mind, I was helping a friend while weakening McLaren, who were our closest rivals at that time. So, what was the worst that could happen?”
Christian Horner's book Drive is out on Thursday, October 22.
