'Red Bull negotiating with Mercedes for early arrival of Hodgkinson'

Red Bull Racing announced in April that Ben Hodgkinson is moving from Mercedes to the team of Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez. The Briton will become the new technical director of Red Bull's Powertrains project, but for the time being he will not be able to start in Milton Keynes. The Austrian team is hoping to conclude a deal with rival Mercedes.

Hodgkinson is stuck with the "gardening leave" rule. What does this mean exactly? It's a provision that ensures that top team employees can't switch to a competitor overnight and hand over all secret information just like that.

Normally, we're talking about a six-month bridging period, but according to information from F1 Insider Hodginkson would not be allowed to work for Red Bull until 2023 according to his contract. The German medium reports that the current number two in the 2021 Constructors' Championship is therefore currently in talks with Mercedes. Red Bull is negotiating with its German rival to see if Hodginkson's services can be used sooner.

Collaboration Volkswagen Group

There is a chance that Red Bull and Audi, part of the Volkswagen Group, will work together from 2026 onwards when the new engine regulations enter into Formula 1. Helmut Marko doesn't want to say much about this."We first want to make sure that we can stand on our own two feet with our ambitious project, but if partners want to join us, they are of course welcome."