McLaren’s ‘childish’ confirmation of Gianpiero Lambiase signing has renewed ‘tension’ with Red Bull

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Tension between McLaren and Red Bull has seemingly been renewed after staff from the Austrian constructor found an aspect of their rivals’ press release regarding the signing of Gianpiero Lambiase to be ‘childish’.

Laurent Mekies’ verdict on Gianpiero Lambiase inside the Miami Grand Prix paddock sent alarm bells ringing in the ears of F1 fans around the world. Not that he said anything untoward about McLaren, quite the opposite.

“GP had an extraordinary opportunity,” the Frenchman told Sky Sports F1. “You know he’s going to be a team principal there. It’s not something that I can do anything else than wish him well.”

While a future role as team principal has been churning in the rumour mill, the official communication is that Lambiase will be joining the British constructor as Chief Racing Officer in 2028, reporting to team principal Andrea Stella.

CEO Zak Brown was immediately asked for his reaction to Mekies’ comments, to which he instantly downplayed the notion of Stella being replaced by Lambiase in the future.

The American then joked to Sky Sports F1’s Simon Lazenby that Mekies “knows something that I don’t,” before reiterating his support for the 55-year-old Italian.

• READ MORE: Zak Brown says Red Bull stance on Gianpiero Lambiase’s McLaren move can make things ‘uncomfortable’

Red Bull found McLaren’s Gianpiero Lambiase announcement ‘childish’

During a post-Miami Grand Prix episode of De Telegraaf’s F1 podcast, journalist Erik van Haren shared his understanding of the situation between McLaren and Red Bull.

The Dutchman began by highlighting how Mekies’s slip regarding Lambiase’s future role at McLaren is an ‘open secret’ inside the F1 paddock, but of course, the Woking-based outfit hasn’t officially confirmed it yet.

He also theorised that Mekies may have intentionally revealed the information, due to there being some standing ‘tension’ between the two F1 outfits.

Rank each of McLaren’s recent hires from Red Bull out of 10 after signing Gianpiero Lambiase

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“So, on Sunday, I was in the paddock, and Zak came along; he popped over for a bit,” van Haren started. “We had a chat for about twenty minutes, and the tension had eased, they both said.

“But there’s something going on; there’s a bit of a row between them. There was the press release announcing Lambiase at McLaren, where they’d mentioned those other two names from Red Bull that they’ve poached in recent years.

“Red Bull thought that was a bit childish. So there’s a bit of animosity between them.”

In McLaren’s official press release, the team highlighted their poaching of Lambiase from Red Bull by making a reference to their already done deals with Rob Marshall and Will Courtenay.

It reads, “The team’s ability to attract and secure top talent, like Lambiase, and previously Rob Marshall and Will Courtenay (…) is a testament to the strategic vision and culture that are integrally embodied in McLaren under the leadership of Zak Brown and Andrea Stella.”

• READ MORE: Max Verstappen’s Miami radio proves why Red Bull cannot let Gianpiero Lambiase join McLaren early

Andrea Stella has been linked with a return to Ferrari after Gianpiero Lambiase news

Upon the announcement that Lambiase would be making a move across the pit lane, reports emerged that linked Stella with a return to Maranello. The team principal began his career in F1 with Ferrari, before departing for McLaren in 2015.

One report suggested that Stella has already signed a pre-contract with Ferrari, which would see him return to his former stomping ground in hopes of finally delivering some success to Maranello.

The iconic Italian F1 team haven’t won a drivers’ world title since Kimi Raikkonen’s last-gasp feat in 2007, with their most recent constructors’ championship coming one year later in 2008.

Stella already knows the blueprint to turn a team from podium contention into title candidates, so he would be a viable option for any team on the grid at this point in his career.