Christian Horner has claimed ahead of Abu Dhabi that Lewis Hamilton reached out to him to discuss a move to Red Bull.
Hamilton has clarified neither he nor a representative for the Mercedes team approached Red Bull.
This comes after Red Bull team principal Christian Horner claimed Hamilton’s entourage contacted the Milton Keynes team prior to his contract extension.
A shock to many, the move would have seen him partnered with 2021 rival, Max Verstappen.
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“I don’t really know where that story has come from. I know it’s come from Christian.”
However, Hamilton quickly addressed the rumours at the Yas Marine Circuit. Speaking to Sky Sports, Hamilton was clearly confused by Horner’s comments.
He said: “I don’t really know where that story has come from. I know it’s come from Christian, I don’t really understand what he’s talking about.
“No one, as far as I’m aware from my team, has spoken to him. I haven’t spoken to Christian in years.”
Hamilton recently signed a contract that sees him race for Mercedes until the end of 2025.
Although he denied interest in jumping ship, he did reveal Horner made contact with him.
He said: “He did reach out to me earlier in the year about meeting up, I just congratulated them on an amazing year.
“I said ‘hopefully soon I’ll be able to fight against you guys in the near future’. That was it. So I’m not really sure, I think he’s just stirring things.
“There aren’t any confidential discussions, so I don’t know. You know Christian, he loves that kind of stuff.”
Mercedes has struggled to fight Red Bull since the end of the 2021 season. While there have been glimmers of hope, the Brackley team are still struggling with inconsistent performance.
“100% per cent, I’d be more than happy to race against him in an equal car.”
Although having no interest in joining Red Bull, Hamilton is keen to go face-to-face with Verstappen once more.
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He said: “100% per cent, I’d be more than happy to race against him in an equal car.
“Red Bull has done an amazing job and it’s an incredible team – any driver would love to drive for such a great group of people.
“I think moving from a car that’s not so great to a winning car, from my perspective, that’s not the dream.
“The dream is to start where we [Mercedes] are and build up to then winning. And that’s why I’ve stayed at Mercedes.”
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