How Red Bull engineers targeted by Ferrari could hold key to Laurent Mekies contract termination. Ferrari's Red Bull F1 signings could hold key to Mekies release.

AlphaTauri revealed before last week’s Baku Grand Prix that they have appointed current Ferrari racing director Laurent Mekies as the new team principal to replace Franz Tost. Nonetheless, the Frenchman’s arrival at the Faenza team is uncertain for now since he is still bound by a long-term deal with the Maranello team, and there is no schedule yet for his transfer.

Franz Tost stated that the timing of Laurent Mekies’ transition is dependent on the discussions between Scuderia Ferrari and Red Bull.

“First of all, it’s between Laurent and Fred [Vasseur],” – the current team principal of the Scuderia AlphaTauri Formula One team explained when asked about the process of sorting Laurent Mekies’ exit from the Italian side – “Then, of course, Red Bull will take a major role in this. I think that Oliver Mintzlaff [Red Bull CEO] will then talk to the CEO from Ferrari and find a solution.” – he added.

Although the Maranello team is not completely against the move, Frederic Vasseur, the team principal, is unhappy about the timing of AlphaTauri’s official announcement, and as a result, he is not keen to rush the process to accommodate the move as quickly as AlphaTauri would like. During the Azerbaijan Grand Prix last weekend, the French manager called AlphaTauri’s decision to go public with the Laurent Mekies appointment “aggressive.”

At the same time, the Autosport media news outlet has found out that negotiations between Red Bull and Scuderia Ferrari could result in a compromise arrangement that benefits both sides.

Reports suggest that the Italian side has been attempting to hire staff, including aerodynamicists, from other teams such as Red Bull. Although agreements have been made, Ferrari cannot immediately employ these individuals because of the usual mandatory gardening leave periods. Nevertheless, sources claim for Autosport that the Scuderia may be open to initiating Laurent Mekies’ transition to AlphaTauri if Red Bull agrees to release their staff from their contracts early, who will then move to the Maranello team.

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For now Scuderia Ferrari did not want to make any official statements on this issue. However, Mercedes boss Toto Wolff, who is known to have a close relationship with Frederic Vasseur, has pointed out that the Ferrari team principal plans to have an aggressive approach in his dealings over this delicate situation. Asked about the Laurent Mekies matter, Toto Wolff replied:

“Fred needs to put his own team in place and take the right decisions. You can’t stop a traveller. That was always my philosophy, that if somebody wants to go and sees another opportunity, let him go and wish him all the best. Fred is an out-and-out racer and knows exactly what he wants. I think he’s okay with the situation, but obviously, the way it was communicated was a bit abrupt. That’s why Fred’s is going to do the best for Ferrari. And if that means taking the elbows out, then that is good.” – the Mercedes boss concluded.