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How Max Verstappen’s F1 race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase will fit in at McLaren
This is how Gianpiero Lambiase will fit in within McLaren’s F1 organisation when he joins in 2028.
Gianpiero Lambiase will embark on a new role with McLaren in 2028 following a bombshell switch from Red Bull to join a Formula 1 rival.
After reports initially circulated in Dutch media on Thursday morning, the move was officially confirmed by both Red Bull and McLaren later in the day, with Lambiase agreeing to join McLaren once his current contract expires at the end of 2027.
Lambiase is Red Bull’s head of racing, a role he was promoted to at the end of 2024, while he also serves as Max Verstappen’s race engineer.
Ever since Verstappen joined Red Bull from Toro Rosso in 2016, Lambiase – who was previously at Force India – has been the voice in the Dutchman’s ear. The pair share an incredibly close bond and have won four consecutive drivers’ world titles together from 2021 to 2024.
But how will Lambiase fit in to McLaren once he completes his switch to the team?
McLaren has announced that Lambiase will become its chief racing officer. This is a new senior role that will not see Lambiase replacing anyone already at the reigning world champions.
The 45-year-old Briton will report directly to team principal Andrea Stella. The plan is for Lambiase to support Stella by taking on some of his current duties. This will free Stella up to focus on wider leadership aspects of his role.
The role of an F1 team principal within organisational set-ups has greatly changed over time and it is a much broader responsibility now than it was traditionally.
“The role of the chief racing officer already exists within the team’s structure with overall leadership of the race team. These duties are currently managed by Andrea Stella in addition to his role as team principal,” McLaren explained in a press release.
On top of his team principal role, Stella is also essentially head of the technical side of things at McLaren.
McLaren has split its technical director role into three, with Peter Prodromou, Mark Temple and Neil Houldey responsible for aerodynamics, performance and engineering respectively. They, along with chief designer Rob Marshall, report all car design matters directly to Stella.
Lambiase’s role will see him providing extra support on racing and trackside matters, easing the burden on Stella, who is effectively performing twin jobs.
Lambiase is highly regarded within the F1 paddock and his signing is viewed as a major coup for McLaren as it further strengthens its senior leadership structure and wider organisation.
“Lambiase is the latest hire designed to strengthen and support the talent pool that exists at McLaren, while also reaffirming the team’s long-term commitment to confirming its position as a championship-winning team,” McLaren’s statement added.
Reports suggesting McLaren is anticipating Stella to leave the team and potentially return to Ferrari are understood to be wide of the mark. For McLaren this is a case of future-proofing its already-formidable organisation.
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This is how Gianpiero Lambiase will fit in within McLaren’s F1 organisation when he joins in 2028.
Gianpiero Lambiase will embark on a new role with McLaren in 2028 following a bombshell switch from Red Bull to join a Formula 1 rival.
After reports initially circulated in Dutch media on Thursday morning, the move was officially confirmed by both Red Bull and McLaren later in the day, with Lambiase agreeing to join McLaren once his current contract expires at the end of 2027.
Lambiase is Red Bull’s head of racing, a role he was promoted to at the end of 2024, while he also serves as Max Verstappen’s race engineer.
Ever since Verstappen joined Red Bull from Toro Rosso in 2016, Lambiase – who was previously at Force India – has been the voice in the Dutchman’s ear. The pair share an incredibly close bond and have won four consecutive drivers’ world titles together from 2021 to 2024.
But how will Lambiase fit in to McLaren once he completes his switch to the team?
McLaren has announced that Lambiase will become its chief racing officer. This is a new senior role that will not see Lambiase replacing anyone already at the reigning world champions.
The 45-year-old Briton will report directly to team principal Andrea Stella. The plan is for Lambiase to support Stella by taking on some of his current duties. This will free Stella up to focus on wider leadership aspects of his role.
The role of an F1 team principal within organisational set-ups has greatly changed over time and it is a much broader responsibility now than it was traditionally.
“The role of the chief racing officer already exists within the team’s structure with overall leadership of the race team. These duties are currently managed by Andrea Stella in addition to his role as team principal,” McLaren explained in a press release.
On top of his team principal role, Stella is also essentially head of the technical side of things at McLaren.
McLaren has split its technical director role into three, with Peter Prodromou, Mark Temple and Neil Houldey responsible for aerodynamics, performance and engineering respectively. They, along with chief designer Rob Marshall, report all car design matters directly to Stella.
Lambiase’s role will see him providing extra support on racing and trackside matters, easing the burden on Stella, who is effectively performing twin jobs.
Lambiase is highly regarded within the F1 paddock and his signing is viewed as a major coup for McLaren as it further strengthens its senior leadership structure and wider organisation.
“Lambiase is the latest hire designed to strengthen and support the talent pool that exists at McLaren, while also reaffirming the team’s long-term commitment to confirming its position as a championship-winning team,” McLaren’s statement added.
Reports suggesting McLaren is anticipating Stella to leave the team and potentially return to Ferrari are understood to be wide of the mark. For McLaren this is a case of future-proofing its already-formidable organisation.
Gianpiero Lambiase will embark on a new role with McLaren in 2028 following a bombshell switch from Red Bull to join a Formula 1 rival.
After reports initially circulated in Dutch media on Thursday morning, the move was officially confirmed by both Red Bull and McLaren later in the day, with Lambiase agreeing to join McLaren once his current contract expires at the end of 2027.
Lambiase is Red Bull’s head of racing, a role he was promoted to at the end of 2024, while he also serves as Max Verstappen’s race engineer.
Ever since Verstappen joined Red Bull from Toro Rosso in 2016, Lambiase – who was previously at Force India – has been the voice in the Dutchman’s ear. The pair share an incredibly close bond and have won four consecutive drivers’ world titles together from 2021 to 2024.
But how will Lambiase fit in to McLaren once he completes his switch to the team?
McLaren has announced that Lambiase will become its chief racing officer. This is a new senior role that will not see Lambiase replacing anyone already at the reigning world champions.
The 45-year-old Briton will report directly to team principal Andrea Stella. The plan is for Lambiase to support Stella by taking on some of his current duties. This will free Stella up to focus on wider leadership aspects of his role.
The role of an F1 team principal within organisational set-ups has greatly changed over time and it is a much broader responsibility now than it was traditionally.
“The role of the chief racing officer already exists within the team’s structure with overall leadership of the race team. These duties are currently managed by Andrea Stella in addition to his role as team principal,” McLaren explained in a press release.
On top of his team principal role, Stella is also essentially head of the technical side of things at McLaren.
McLaren has split its technical director role into three, with Peter Prodromou, Mark Temple and Neil Houldey responsible for aerodynamics, performance and engineering respectively. They, along with chief designer Rob Marshall, report all car design matters directly to Stella.
Lambiase’s role will see him providing extra support on racing and trackside matters, easing the burden on Stella, who is effectively performing twin jobs.
Lambiase is highly regarded within the F1 paddock and his signing is viewed as a major coup for McLaren as it further strengthens its senior leadership structure and wider organisation.
“Lambiase is the latest hire designed to strengthen and support the talent pool that exists at McLaren, while also reaffirming the team’s long-term commitment to confirming its position as a championship-winning team,” McLaren’s statement added.
Reports suggesting McLaren is anticipating Stella to leave the team and potentially return to Ferrari are understood to be wide of the mark. For McLaren this is a case of future-proofing its already-formidable organisation.
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