Max Verstappen’s long-time race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase will join McLaren in 2028.
Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies announced that Gianpiero Lambiase will assume the role of “team principal” at McLaren starting in 2028. Lambiase was recently hired by McLaren as their chief racing officer. He has been working as Max Verstappen’s race engineer since 2016, creating a successful driver-engineer partnership in F1 history. Mekies expressed confidence that Lambiase’s departure will not negatively impact Red Bull’s direction, despite losing significant personnel in recent years. McLaren CEO Zak Brown noted that the role of team principal has evolved, with more responsibilities being taken on, which Lambiase will handle when he joins. Mekies views Lambiase’s new role as akin to a team principal, acknowledging the talents cultivated within Red Bull and expressing pride in internal promotions and looking outside for specific skills when needed. Both teams are focused on success during the remaining years of Lambiase’s time at Red Bull.
