Mercedes agree to let F1 engine expert join Red Bull in May

LONDON : Formula One champions Mercedes have agreed to let engine expert Ben Hodgkinson move to rivals Red Bull in May, they announced on Friday.

The signing was announced by Red Bull last April without a starting date being set.

The head of mechanical engineering at Mercedes AMG High Performance Powertrains (HPP) will become technical director of Red Bull's own engine company.

Red Bull won this year's drivers' championship with Max Verstappen while Mercedes have been constructors' champions since the start of the V6 turbo hybrid era in 2014.

Red Bull have started their own powertrains company after the departure at the end of 2021 of engine supplier Honda, whose intellectual property has been acquired by the team.

"Mercedes F1 and Red Bull today reached an agreement regarding the appointment of Ben Hodgkinson," Mercedes said in a statement.

"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."

The move comes after Red Bull agreed to let their chief engineer for aerodynamics Dan Fallows move to Mercedes-powered Aston Martin as technical director in April. That signing was first announced last June.

(Reporting by Alan Baldwin, editing by Christian Radnedge)