Mercedes, Red Bull agree Hodgkinson transfer

Henry Valantine 21 Jan 2022 5:12 PM

Mercedes and Red Bull have confirmed Ben Hodgkinson will move to Red Bull Powertrains on 24 May and become their technical director.

It was announced last year that Red Bull had poached the Mercedes head of mechanical engineering as the team forms its new Powertrains division, after taking over Honda’s intellectual property and becoming its own factory engine manufacturer.

“Mercedes F1 and Red Bull F1 today reached an agreement regarding the appointment of Ben Hodgkinson,” both teams posted in a statement.

Mercedes F1 and Red Bull F1 today reached an agreement regarding the appointment of Ben Hodgkinson.

Under the terms of that agreement, Ben, who joined Mercedes in August 2001, will be free to join Red Bull Powertrains from 24 May 2022.

— Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team (@MercedesAMGF1) January 21, 2022

“Under the terms of that agreement, Ben, who joined Mercedes in August 2001, will be free to join Red Bull Powertrains from 24 May 2022.”

Red Bull have been on a hiring spree since its Powertrains operation was announced, with as many as 500 new employees recruited to take on the challenge of building their own power units, with Honda staying on to aid the transition into doing so.

“We are delighted to welcome Ben to Red Bull Powertrains as Technical Director,” Horner said at the time of Hodgkinson’s signing.

“He comes to this hugely exciting project as a proven race winner and as an innovator capable of leading a like-minded team of highly skilled engineers.”

Hodgkinson was recently honoured by the Queen with a British Empire Medal, after being at the forefront of designing a life-saving device in the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The joint agreement on a release date brings to a close a long-running battle between the two title rivals over Hodgkinson and is the second piece of major transfer news this week with Red Bull also confirming the departure of aero chief Dan Fallows, who is joining Aston Martin as technical director on April 2.