By Craig Hinton
September 4 2015

So what engine is Red Bull going to get in 2016, Hamilton is worried if they get Merc power they could be a threat to him. It will be interesting to see what engine Red Bull get next year.

Lewis Hamilton has told Sky Sports it would be a mistake if Mercedes supply Red Bull with engines.

Despite dire warnings from Red Bull's hierarchy that the team will leave the sport unless they have access to competitive engines, Hamilton fears Mercedes risk losing world titles if they bail out the former champions.

Red Bull are believed to have served Renault, their current engine suppliers, with a quit notice to terminate their partnership as early as this year while Mercedes' previous reluctance to consider becoming their erstwhile rival's power providers has significantly softened in recent weeks.

Red Bull-Merc decoded

Just why are Mercedes considering powering Red Bull?

However, according to Hamilton, supplying Red Bull would be a mistake on Mercedes' behalf if they want to continue dominating the sport. 

Asked by Sky Sports News HQ if it would be wise for Mercedes to power Red Bull, Hamilton replied: "I think if we're serious about winning world championships, probably not."

In addition to the marketing value of linking up with the Red Bull brand, supplying the Milton Keynes-based outfit would put an extra buffer between F1's reigning champions and Ferrari, their closest competition this year. But Hamilton is wary that supplying Red Bull would be an unnecessary sporting risk. 

"Red Bull is a great team and it's like giving Ferrari our engine," said Hamilton. "We're here to win so we don't really need it. There's no financial benefit really in it, so I think we're good where we are."

While supplying Red Bull would be a risk to Mercedes, their exit from F1 would be a severe blow to the sport and to the credibility of the Silver Arrows' current domination.

Told about Hamilton's remarks by Sky Sports, Mercedes boss Toto Wolff didn't disagree with his driver's assessment – but said Mercedes couldn't let self-interest hold sway.