Gianpiero Lambiase is leaving Red Bull. The team confirmed it on Thursday, and his destination is McLaren.
That’s it. One of the most succesfull driver-engineer pairings in modern F1 history is coming to an end. Four World Championships, countless radio battles, and a bond that many in the paddock compared to an old married couple. All of it has an expiration date now.
Dutch journalists Erik Van Haren and Jacky Martens broke the story first. Red Bull then released a statement shortly after, making it official.
“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. Until his planned departure, ‘GP’ continues in his roles as head of racing and as race engineer to Max Verstappen. The team and he are fully committed to add more success to our strong track record together.”
— Red Bull Racing, Official Statement
So Lambiase stays until his contract runs out. He keeps engineering Verstappen’s car, keeps running the racing department. Business as usual, at least on paper. But everyone knows this changes the dynamic completly.
McLaren won the race for Lambiase
Here’s what makes this interesting. Lambiase had options. Aston Martin wanted him as team principal. Williams came knocking too. He said no to both.
McLaren offered something better. The salary is reportedly several times higher than what Red Bull pays him. And there is speculation, coming mostly from Dutch media, that Lambiase could eventualy take over from Andrea Stella if the Italian returns to Ferrari. That part is unconfirmed, but the fact that people are talking about it tells you how serious this move is.
What is confirmed is that Lambiase would be joining familiar faces. Rob Marshall moved to McLaren as technical director back in 2024. Will Courtenay followed in January this year as sporting director. Three key Red Bull people, all ending up at the same team. At some point you have to stop calling it coincidence.
Red Bull is losing people fast
Let’s just list what happened in the last two years. Adrian Newey left for Aston Martin. Christian Horner got fired. Helmut Marko’s role was reduced significantly. Jonathan Wheatley departed. And just this week, Ole Schack, Verstappen’s front-end mechanic for over twenty years, handed in his notice. He reportedly told people the team atmosphere changed after Oliver Mintzlaff’s corporate restructuring took hold.
Now add Lambiase to that list.
The team that dominated 2022 and 2023 barely resembels itself anymore. Laurent Mekies is running the show now as team boss, and the challenge in front of him is enormous.
This is really about Verstappen
Forget the engineering titles and the corporate moves for a second. This is personal.
Verstappen and Lambiase have worked together since the 2016 Spanish Grand Prix. That was Max’s first race with the senior team. It was also his first win. They’ve been together every single race weekend since.
Their radio exchanges became legendary. Blunt, sometimes harsh, ocasionally funny. Lambiase was one of the very few people who could push back on Verstappen without it becoming a problem. He could tell Max things that nobody else in that garage would dare to say. And Verstappen respected him for it.
Last year, when Lambiase went through dificult personal circumstances, Verstappen was publicly supportive. He called Lambiase a friend, not just a collegue. That matters.
Now think about where Verstappen’s head is at right now. At the Japanese Grand Prix, he told the media he’s considering leaving F1 after this season. He’s frustrated with the 2026 regulations. He’s repeatadly said the cars aren’t fun to drive. His team is not competitive. And now, the person he trusts most on the pit wall is leaving.
Understanding why Lambiase made this choice is one thing. Dealing with the consequences of it is something else entirely.
McLaren is playing the long game
You have to give McLaren credit here. They are not just signing random engineers. They are picking apart the exact infrastructure that made Red Bull dominant. Marshall knew how the car was built. Courtenay knew how race strategy worked. Lambiase knows how to get the best out of the best driver on the grid.
Put those three together with what McLaren already has, and you start to see a team that is building something very deliberate.
For Red Bull, the question isn’t just about replacements. It’s about convincing Max Verstappen that this is still the place where he wants to be. And with every departure, that conversation gets a little bit harder to win.
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