Christian Horner has revealed that one of his final acts as Red Bull team principal was to approach George Russell's management over a potential move, in response to Mercedes' "public courting" of Max Verstappen.

Horner says in his new autobiography, Drive, that he decided to "fight fire with fire" after growing frustrated with Toto Wolff's attempts to lure Verstappen away.

He claims the approach came during the 2025 British Grand Prix weekend at Silverstone -- Horner's final race in charge before his dismissal just days later -- when he also held private talks with Verstappen about his future and met Carlos Sainz to discuss a potential Red Bull drive.

Mercedes had been pursuing Verstappen amid uncertainty over Red Bull's competitiveness, and speculation that a clause in his contract could allow him to leave during the summer break if he was outside the top three in the drivers' championship.

"This situation was being aggravated by Toto, who was still doing everything he could to lure Max to Mercedes," Horner wrote. "There were more dinners and the public courting continued unabated. At one point, Flavio [Briatore] approached me to say that Toto was convinced that Max would be a Mercedes driver in 2026.

"I shrugged it off. Max hadn't indicated that he wanted out, so these developments were frustrating, but ultimately irrelevant. By that stage, I felt sorrier for George Russell. As a Mercedes driver, he must have been bemused at the situation."

Horner said he eventually decided to speak directly to Verstappen ahead of the British Grand Prix.

"Mercedes were still courting the media, with Toto hinting yet again that Max was a potential replacement for George Russell," he wrote. "And Helmut [Marko] had claimed that our star driver was almost certain to leave if he wasn't in contention for the championship at the summer break. Tired of the drama, I went directly to the source for answers.

"A few days ahead of the race, I met Max at Silverstone. 'I'm taking my Red Bull hat off,' I said. 'What do you want out of all this?' Max wasn't one for sugar-coating his ambitions.

"'I want to win. But I don't want to have to leave to do it.'

"Well, that was good news.

"'Mercedes are making noise,' he continued. 'And of course the media writes what suits them. But Christian: I started my career at Red Bull. I want to finish it here, too.'

"I felt optimistic. Though Max wasn't done.

"'But, if can't provide me with a competitive car, I'm going to have to look at that...'"

Horner said he told Verstappen he could not guarantee Red Bull would be competitive under the new engine regulations coming in 2026, but that he would have plenty of options for 2027 if the team struggled.

"'I really don't want to go anywhere. My preference is to stay here and win,' he said," Horner wrote.

Having clarified Verstappen's position, Horner turned his attention to Red Bull's second seat, with Yuki Tsunoda struggling to deliver consistent results.

"On the Thursday night, ahead of practice, Carlos Sainz Jr visited the house to discuss a potential 2026 move to Red Bull," Horner wrote.

"He was an established Grand Prix driver, a team player, and I knew he'd work his backside off for the team."

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But Horner was also considering another option, having become increasingly frustrated with Wolff's public pursuit of Verstappen.

"Having grown tired of Toto's challenging approach, I decided to fight fire with fire and approached George Russell's management for a meeting," Horner wrote.

"George was coming to the end of his contract, and if it was OK for Toto to constantly talk about my drivers, then I saw no harm in talking to his about a potential move to Red Bull.

"I initially stated my confusion at Mercedes's attitude to George's contract. I asked his advisor why they weren't taking up his option for the following year when he had performed so strongly. I then explained how, in my opinion, it was obvious that Toto was waiting for Max to make his decision and was messing George around in the meantime.

"I also felt Toto's public courting was disrespectful to such a talented young driver. He should consider Red Bull."

Horner was dismissed as Red Bull team principal and CEO days later, ending a tenure that began with the team's F1 debut in 2005.

Russell, meanwhile, signed a new Mercedes deal in October. He is second in the drivers' championship, behind Kimi Antonelli.

Drive, Christian Horner's autobiography, will be released on Oct. 22.