Mercedes has hired two top engineers from Formula One champion Red Bull in a move it hopes will strengthen its title challenge in 2014 and weaken its dominant rival.
The British-based team said Mark Ellis would be joining as performance director in June 2014 while Giles Wood was appointed chief engineer, in charge of simulation and development, and arriving at the same time.
Ellis is currently Red Bull's head of vehicle dynamics and Wood chief engineer for simulation.
“These two newly-created roles will further strengthen the team's technical organisation, particularly in the fields of simulation and vehicle dynamics,” Mercedes added.
STAFF LOSSES
The two men are the first major signings by the team since the departure of principal Ross Brawn was announced, with executive directors Paddy Lowe and Toto Wolff sharing the leadership tasks.
Red Bull, with Sebastian Vettel, has been the champion for the past four years and was dominant in the second half of the 2013 season with its 26-year-old German driver winning the last nine races in a row.
However, it has suffered some important staff losses, with McLaren trumpeting the signing of aerodynamicist Peter Prodromou for 2015, when the Woking-based team will have Honda as engine partners. - Reuters