Horner ‘wondered what Jordan had been drinking’ with Hamilton-Red Bull F1 claim

Christian Horner says he “wondered what Eddie Jordan had been drinking” when the ex-Formula 1 team boss suggested that Lewis Hamilton should become teammates with Max Verstappen at Red Bull.

Six-times world champion Hamilton is fully expected to remain at Mercedes into 2021 and beyond, with Mercedes targeting the larger gaps in the condensed 2020 calendar to strike up a fresh deal.

But Jordan believes Hamilton quitting Mercedes to join Red Bull and form a ‘superteam’ alongside Verstappen would be a more exciting prospect for F1.

Speaking to Dutch TV channel Ziggo Sport last month, Jordan said: “I personally believe that Lewis should go to Red Bull and not to Ferrari.

“I’ll tell you that is perfect, because… the best young driver of all of Formula 1 at the moment is Max Verstappen. There is no question about it.

“His style, his speed, his intellect, his control on the track. Also his arrogance. And grand prix winners and grand prix champions need a level of arrogance. That is obvious. And he has that.

“Whether he got it from Jos or whatever, I have no real idea, but the facts are that he has an unbelievable talent. And what I believe is if he had a teammate like Lewis Hamilton, then I do believe he would be able to beat him.”

Asked what his own reaction was to Jordan’s suggestion, Horner replied: “I wondered what Eddie had been drinking.

“Look, from a fan’s perspective he’s absolutely right, but I’ve not heard from Lewis recently, so I can only imagine he’s staying where he is.

“I think everyone wants to see Verstappen and Hamilton go head-to-head and hopefully we can give Max the tools to do that, certainly in the remaining races of this year but very much so next year and the year after.”