Red Bull and Mercedes agree on F1 engine boss

The Milton Keynes-based team, which set up its own engine factory in the wake of Honda’s withdrawal from Formula One, announced a series of high-profile signings from Mercedes last year.

In April, Hodgkinson was announced as the new technical director, but it was unclear when he might join as he was firmly contracted in Mercedes’ own Power Unit division.

And with tensions running pretty high between Red Bull and Mercedes throughout the 2021 title campaign, there seemed little chance of reaching an agreement on quick matters.

However, on Friday both Mercedes and Red Bull announced that Hodgkinson would be able to start following an amicable agreement in May this year.

A brief joint statement read: “Mercedes F1 and Red Bull F1 today reached an agreement on the appointment of Ben Hodgkinson.

“Under this agreement, Ben, who joined Mercedes in August 2001, is free to join Red Bull Powertrains effective May 24, 2022.”

Hodgkinson had been head of mechanical engineering at Mercedes High Performance Powertrains since 2017 after 20 years at the German manufacturer’s Brixworth headquarters.

Commenting on his signing, Red Bull Team Principal Christian Horner said: “We are delighted to welcome Ben to Red Bull Powertrains as Technical Director – a like-minded team of highly skilled engineers.”

Nico Rosberg, Mercedes AMG F1, Ben Hodgkinson, Mercedes AMG F1 Head of Build, race winner Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes AMG F1 and Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull Racing on the podium

Photo by: Sutton Images

Hodgkinson wasn’t the only Mercedes team member to be poached by Red Bull, with five other employees announced as transfers last year.

Steve Blewett, production manager at Mercedes, is to become production manager for engines at Red Bull.

Omid Mostaghimi, head of Mercedes’ F1 electronics team, will become Red Bull’s head of powertrains, electronics and ERS.

Pip Clode, team leader of Mercedes’ F1 concept team for drive units, will become Red Bull’s head of mechanical design ERS.

Anton Mayo, head of the Mercedes engineering team, will become head of ICE design for drive units, while Steve Brodie, Mercedes manager for Formula 1 track and final control, will become Red Bull’s group leader ICE Operations.

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