Laurent Mekies, the team principal of Red Bull Racing, has indicated that Gianpiero Lambiase, who currently serves as Max Verstappen's race engineer, is destined to take on the role of team principal at McLaren. The announcement follows a prior statement made by Red Bull in March, confirming that Lambiase would be departing his position as head of race engineering to join the British outfit. At that time, McLaren disclosed that Lambiase would assume the title of chief racing officer sometime before the end of 2028.
In the same release, McLaren clarified that the chief racing officer post already existed within its hierarchy, with Andrea Stella shouldering those responsibilities alongside his duties as team principal. The transition, however, appears to be evolving more rapidly than originally scheduled.
During the Miami Grand Prix—the first race of the season after the news broke—Mekies spoke to Sky Sports F1 and asserted that his "current employee is going to be a team principal" at McLaren. When asked whether Lambiase's move marked yet another high‑profile exit from the Red Bull stable, Mekies responded without defensiveness. He acknowledged that the team had seen a number of key figures depart over the past four or five years, but stressed that Red Bull was actively working to cultivate an environment that attracts, nurtures, and retains top talent. "We take it very seriously and everything we do is to try to make sure that we have the best environment to attract, to develop and to retain our people," he said, adding confidence that the organisation would eventually master this challenge.
Mekies also emphasized that the decision was ultimately a personal career opportunity for Lambiase. "GP (Lambiase) had an extraordinary opportunity.
You know, he is going to be a team principal there. It's not something that I can do anything else than wishing him well," the Red Bull boss told the broadcaster.
Red Bull later confirmed to Sky Sports that Mekies' comments were accurate and that the Frenchman indeed believes Lambiase will become McLaren's team principal. McLaren CEO Zak Brown, when presented with the Red Bull statement, quipped that Mekies "knows something I don't" and reiterated his satisfaction with Andrea Stella's performance as team principal since his appointment in December 2022. Brown highlighted Stella's leadership in guiding McLaren to back‑to‑back constructors' championships and a drivers' title for Lando Norris in the previous season. "My job as CEO is to get the best talent, to think long term, to have the most strength on the pit wall or at the factory, in design, whatever the case may be," Brown explained.
"Andrea has done a fantastic job, our technical team. GP is a huge talent, so when the opportunity presented itself to strengthen our racing team, that's exactly what we're going to do—whether it's a racing driver, an engineer, a strategist, whatever the case may be.
So, I'm very happy he's going to be joining us." The timing of Lambiase's move remains somewhat ambiguous. While McLaren initially suggested the appointment would occur no later than 2028, the organization has expressed a desire to accelerate the transition if possible. Their statement noted that the chief racing officer role already carries overall leadership of the race team and that Andrea Stella currently manages those duties in addition to his principal responsibilities.
By bringing Lambiase aboard, McLaren aims to reinforce its talent pool and underscore a long‑term commitment to remaining a championship‑winning outfit. Beyond the personnel discussion, the broader context of the Miami weekend provided a backdrop for these revelations. The event featured a Sprint race on Saturday, followed by the full Grand Prix on Sunday, with Sky Sports F1 offering live coverage and a host of ancillary programming such as pre‑race build‑ups, qualifying analysis, and post‑race reaction shows.
The Miami round is part of the 2026 Formula 1 calendar, marking a return to the United States after a brief hiatus. The narrative surrounding Lambiase's departure reflects a wider pattern in Formula 1, where top engineering talent often migrates between teams in pursuit of new challenges and greater authority.
Engineers like Lambiase, who have been instrumental in shaping race strategies for a multiple‑world‑champion driver, bring a wealth of technical insight and leadership experience that can be pivotal for a team aspiring to close the performance gap with the front‑runners. McLaren's strategic move to elevate an engineer to a senior leadership position signals a recognition that success in modern F1 is as much about the synergy of engineering, data analysis, and on‑track execution as it is about driver skill.
By integrating a proven race engineer into the upper echelons of the organization, McLaren hopes to translate on‑track insights into broader technical development, potentially accelerating the pace of car upgrades and optimizing race‑day decisions. In summary, Laurent Mekies' remarks confirm that Gianpiero Lambiase is on a clear path to become McLaren's team principal, a transition that both Red Bull and McLaren acknowledge as a significant development.
While the exact timeline remains fluid, the move underscores the fluid nature of talent in Formula 1 and highlights McLaren's commitment to bolstering its leadership structure in pursuit of sustained championship contention.