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Gianpiero Lambiase, Max Verstappen’s race engineer, is reportedly set to stay at Red Bull after all.
In recent days, there have been strong rumours that Lambiase would leave Red Bull before the start of the 2026 season. Aston Martin and Williams have both been credited with an interest.
However, Dutch publication De Telegraaf are now reporting that Lambiase will remain in his role as Verstappen’s engineer, and Red Bull’s Head of Racing, for the year ahead.
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The Briton is under contract until 2027, which puts Red Bull in a strong position. Lambiase has been the voice in Verstappen’s ear ever since his race-winning debut at the 2016 Spanish GP.
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The prospect of Lambiase leaving would surely be a concern for Red Bull at a time when Verstappen’s own future is in a degree of doubt. What’s more, the team have already lost several senior personnel.
While Christian Horner was fired and Helmut Marko left by mutual consent, designer Adrian Newey, sporting director Jonathan Wheatley and strategist Will Courtenay have all joined rival teams.
Further down the chain, two of Verstappen’s engineers, David Mart and Michael Manning, have already left, and Michael Manning will be joining Williams next year. Keeping Lambiase ensures continuity and preserves one of F1’s most formidable partnerships.
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As Horner explained in the summer of 2023, Lambiase is uniquely equipped for the demands of being Verstappen’s engineer.
“I think to race engineer Max Verstappen you’ve got to have strength of character, because he is one tough customer,” said Horner, via Autosport. “Many race engineers would crumble under that pressure and GP has got the strength of character to deal with that.
“GP is our Jason Statham equivalent, I guess, they certainly look alike! He deals with him firmly but fairly and there’s a great respect between the two of them.
“The only problem is that conversation between the two of them, 200 million people are listening to. But there’s a great bond and a great trust between the two. There’s no counselling required.”
How many wins do Max Verstappen and Gianpiero Lambiase need to break the driver/engineer record?
After his victory at the season finale in Abu Dhabi, Verstappen has stood on the top step 71 times for Red Bull. Lambiase has played a role in all of these wins.
The record for a driver/engineer combination is still held by Lewis Hamilton and Peter Bonnington. Hamilton won 84 races for Mercedes, with Bonnington present for all but one.
Martin Brundle says Hamilton needs his own Lambiase at Ferrari, where he has yet to score a podium. ‘GP’, as he is nicknamed, understands ‘all the little nuances’ of Verstappen’s communication.
While Michael Schumacher won 72 races for Ferrari – one more than Verstappen has for Red Bull – his dominant years were split between two engineers, Luca Baldisserri and Chris Dyer.
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