0
The departure of Gianpiero Lambiase to McLaren is already painful for Red Bull. But according to David Coulthard, there is a further awkward chapter still to come, and it will begin well before Lambiase actually leaves.
The Inevitable Moment
Red Bull have already said goodbye to Adrian Newey, Jonathan Wheatley, and Rob Marshall in recent years, and had Christian Horner removed from his role. Lambiase is a different kind of loss because his relationship with Verstappen is personal as much as professional. Verstappen has said publicly that Lambiase leaving would be a factor in his own thinking about the future.
Verstappen Can Overtake Senna on the All-Time Front Row Starts List
"It Is Entirely Realistic That Verstappen Takes a Few Years Away From F1"
Coulthard explained on the Up To Speed podcast what the practical reality of that situation looks like. "One of the most difficult moments for Red Bull is obviously that at the end of the year he cannot walk out of the factory with a laptop full of data. What is in your head you can take with you." That distinction, between institutional data and personal knowledge, is the line that governs what happens next.
Access Will Be Restricted
The consequence is that Lambiase will eventually be excluded from certain conversations and certain parts of the Red Bull operation. "There comes a point where they say: listen, you cannot really work on this car anymore, or you cannot be involved in discussions about development for 2027 and beyond. That becomes a genuinely uncomfortable scenario." Coulthard framed this not as a punishment but as a standard part of how Formula 1 operates when a key person commits to a rival.
He spoke from personal experience. "I went through it myself as a driver. At the end of 1995 I had already signed for McLaren and you still complete your race weekends normally. But at the Williams factory there were certain departments I was no longer allowed to enter. That is understandable because I was moving to another team. It just starts to affect the relationship and you end up making a kind of compromise." For Lambiase and Red Bull, that same dynamic is now approaching.
Azerbaijan Grand Prix
I. Hadjar
A. Antonelli
C. Leclerc
982 members have this team as their favourite
Replies (0)
Login to reply