Max Verstappen says blocking Lambiase exit “would be stupid”

Max Verstappen has finally given his verdict on the news that his long-time race engineer and close ally Gianpiero Lambiase will leave Red Bull to join McLaren in 2028, saying blocking his exit “would be stupid from my side”.

Lambiase—known as ‘GP’—shocked many by announcing he will move from his current role as Head of Racing and Verstappen’s race engineer to take on the newly created position of Chief Racing Officer at McLaren.

The move was confirmed during Formula 1’s enforced April hiatus, but it was only ahead of the Miami Grand Prix that Verstappen was asked for his thoughts.

“We had a good chat about that and it would be stupid from my side to try and hold him back when you get an opportunity like that,” said Verstappen, speaking to the media in Miami.

“I was very happy for him. We are still working together this year, next year.

“Times change in your career and that was a really good opportunity for him so I’m happy for him and as a team, we keep pushing together, keep looking forward. In the interests of the team for the future we are trying to find the best people to replace him.

“The general understanding that we have with each other and the chemistry works really well.

“That’s very rare I think in racing. You don’t see that often, a driver and engineer that gel that well together.

“That’s of course something I’ll have to try and find again. It’s not that easy but sometimes that happens.”

Verstappen and Lambiase have won four consecutive drivers’ championships together, alongside 71 victories dating back to the Dutchman’s maiden Grand Prix for Red Bull in 2016, which he won at just 18 years old.

In 2023, Verstappen also effectively secured the constructors’ championship for Red Bull, with his 19 wins from 22 races helping the team dominate the standings—his individual points tally even surpassing that of the next-best team, Mercedes.

The four-time world champion previously suggested after his maiden title in 2021 that he would not want to continue in Formula 1 without Lambiase. Now faced with that reality, however, Verstappen emphasised the importance of respecting his engineer’s career progression.

“It’s not only about me all the time,” he added.

“I will have to work with someone else, but I think times change, and the offer that he got, I would be an idiot to try and keep him.

“It is also about his career and moving forward, so for me, it was a no-brainer to be honest, but we are looking to the future now, and working with different engineers, and I’m sure we’ll find solutions for that.

“I already said that I wish him the best and that there are no hard feelings, and that as a team, we look to the future and want to innovate and improve.”

The future of Verstappen himself also remains under scrutiny, given his well-documented stance on the 2026 Formula 1 regulations and his desire to explore other motorsport categories beyond F1.

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Written by

Jawad Yaqub

An eCommerce Specialist by day and reporting on F1 by night. Jawad is passionate about motorsport, having provided accredited F1 coverage for more than a decade and is a member of the AIPS (International Sports Press Association). Live blogging (almost) every grand prix too since 2014, as well as articles on the Supercars Championship. Also keen on sustainability, photography, collecting vinyl, (trying to) expertly barbeque and learning to Dad.

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