Red Bull Formula 1 boss Christian Horner has warned Ferrari that the team’s environment could become “divisive” with Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton in 2025.
Hamilton’s switch to Ferrari has dominated the headlines since the deal was announced almost 12 months ago, as F1’s most successful driver and team combine.
The Briton will be aiming to conclude his illustrious career with a record eighth Drivers’ Championship whilst also ending Ferrari’s title drought dating back to 2008.
However, Hamilton won’t receive number-one status at the Italian marque as he will be on equal terms with Leclerc, who’s won eight races with Ferrari since 2019.
The pair’s intra-team battle to gain the upper hand is set to be a fascinating subplot and marks a complete contrast to the driver structure established at Red Bull.
Horner has said that reigning champion Max Verstappen will be Red Bull’s “lead driver”, while new team-mate Liam Lawson is tasked with adding “strength in depth”.
But while not having two drivers on a similar level cost Red Bull the Constructors’ title in 2024, Horner has claimed it avoids the tension Ferrari might be susceptible to.
“We’re perhaps slightly different to other teams where we go: ‘Do you know what? Max Verstappen is the most valuable asset in Formula 1,” Horner told talkSPORT.
“He’s our lead driver. If you can get close to him, fantastic. But the reality is the expectation is for Max to win.
“A team like Ferrari next year, for example, are going to have two drivers that are going to be taking points off each other – and which horse do you back?
“You have to back both of them, but that sometimes becomes divisive within a team. Different teams have different approaches.”
Ferrari unconcerned by potential driver tension
However, Ferrari chief Frederic Vasseur has quashed Horner’s concern, arguing that the positives to having team-mates push each other eclipses the potential complications.
Vasseur highlighted how Leclerc and Carlos Sainz, who Hamilton has replaced, working to equal opportunities held a huge role in the side’s rise to second place last season.
When asked whether Hamilton and Leclerc going head-to-head in a title fight would be a good “headache” to handle, Vasseur replied to Sky F1: “Yeah, I prefer to fight for one, two than for 19, 20, this is clear.
“And I think it’s also part of the performance, clearly.
“The last two years I let them race on track and it was for the benefit of the team, because the emulation that we created like this was part of the recovery when we had tough times.
“And they had huge respect between them and we had a good moment this morning with the father of Carlos [in a farewell test at Fiorano] and it was very nice.
“It’s part of the performance of the team.”
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