The Hamilton-Mercedes alliance is widely regarded as the greatest driver-team combination Formula 1 has ever seen, producing six world titles and 84 grand prix victories.
Yet the man who helped set it in motion was, perhaps surprisingly, the boss of the team that beat them to the 2012 constructors’ championship.
Christian Horner has disclosed in his new book, Drive, that he was instrumental in steering Lewis Hamilton toward the Silver Arrows during a pivotal period in 2012.
At the time, Hamilton was deep into his sixth McLaren season, finishing the year fourth in the standings and a massive 91 points behind Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel.
Horner had explored the possibility of bringing Hamilton to Red Bull to partner Vettel, but when those talks led nowhere, his attention turned elsewhere.
He identified Niki Lauda, then Mercedes Non-Executive Chairman, as the person who could unlock the deal, and pointed the F1 legend in Hamilton’s direction.
“Mercedes, who had only just bought the Brawn team, was struggling,” Horner recalled in comments to Sky Sports, noting that years with Nico Rosberg and Michael Schumacher had failed to produce the results the team needed.
“When Niki turned up at Mercedes, it felt like, do you know what, why don’t you go for Lewis, who was inevitably becoming frustrated at McLaren, and Niki persuaded him to go there.”
Horner believes one specific race weekend proved to be the decisive moment that accelerated Hamilton’s departure from the Woking outfit.
At the 2012 Singapore Grand Prix, Hamilton was running at the front before a gearbox failure ended his race, handing Vettel yet another victory.
Standing on the podium after that win, Horner looked down into the crowd and spotted Lauda, who removed his famous cap and gave a broad thumbs up.
“I think things had sort of been happening over that weekend, and he knew that result was only going to help his cause,” Horner reflected, describing it as a telling moment in the transfer saga.
Within just five days of that Singapore race, the announcement came that Hamilton had signed a three-year contract with Mercedes, a move many in the paddock questioned at the time.
History rendered those doubts irrelevant, with Hamilton going on to dominate the sport across the following decade before departing the team at the close of the 2024 season.
Horner’s revelation adds a remarkable footnote to one of motorsport’s greatest stories, with the Red Bull chief unwittingly helping to build the dynasty that would eventually rival his own.