Red Bull confirm exactly when Gianpiero Lambiase will leave | F1 | Sport
Max Verstappen’s race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase will leave Red Bull Racing upon the expiry of his current contract. The team confirmed his impending exit on Thursday afternoon, hours after the news broke that Lambiase had decided to start anew elsewhere. He will join McLaren who, several minutes after Red Bull’s statement, confirmed the signing of the experienced engineer.
In a statement, a Red Bull spokesperson said: “Oracle Red Bull Racing confirms that Gianpiero Lambiase will leave the team in 2028, when his current contract expires. GP is a valued member of the team, which he joined in 2015. The team and he are fully committed to add more success to our strong track record together.”
Red Bull also confirmed that Lambiase will continue to work up to the time of his departure from the team. That means he will continue to work both as head of racing and also as Verstappen‘s race engineer, ensuring a continuation of that partnership until either Lambiase leaves or the four-time world champion walks away himself.
The latter is a genuine possibility – he admitted as much after the Japanese Grand Prix last month when he told media that he would spend the next few weeks pondering his future. He does not enjoy racing the new generation of F1 cars and the future loss of Lambiase, one of his very closest allies in the F1 world, will count as another reason to leave.
McLaren confirmed in their own statement that Lambiase will become their new chief racing officer, taking on some of the responsibilities currently overseen by Andrea Stella and reporting directly to the Italian team principal. A McLaren spokesperson described Lambiase as a “top talent” as they crowed about having snatched several top F1 minds away from their rivals.
They said: “The team’s ability to attract and secure top talent, like Lambiase, and previously Rob Marshall and Will Courtenay, alongside the retention and promotion of highly-talented people already within the team, is a testament to the strategic vision and culture that are integrally embodied in the McLaren Mastercard F1 Team under the leadership of Zak Brown and Andrea Stella, who are also both on long-term contracts.”
McLaren also suggested that the timing of Lambiase’s arrival may yet be brought forwards, rather than Red Bull’s assertion that he “will” leave in 2028. The statement from McLaren concluded by saying: “The team look forward to welcoming Gianpiero Lambiase when his existing contract ends, no later than 2028.”
