Red Bull has confirmed that Max Verstappen’s replacement race engineer for Gianpiero Lambiase will debut in the role at the Formula 1 United States Grand Prix.
Lambiase and Verstappen have enjoyed a strong, if not tense, working relationship over the years as the Red Bull star became a four-time world champion.
But the partnership will come to an end following the 2026 season, as Lambiase moves to McLaren.
Red Bull is now beginning to phase out Lambiase as the 2026 season nears its climax, with Motorsport.NL reporting that the team has confirmed its plans.
Verstappen's new race engineer will make their debut in Austin
Verstappen’s new engineer turned down Williams role
Red Bull will install Tom Hart as Verstappen’s race engineer for next year, which will begin next weekend at the United States Grand Prix at COTA.
The plan is for Hart to sit in as Verstappen’s race engineer for the US, Brazil and Las Vegas rounds.
Lambiase, at this stage, looks set to see out the season with Verstappen in Qatar and Abu Dhabi, as well as at the Mexico round.
Discussions are currently ongoing between Red Bull and McLaren about when Lambiase can officially start at the Woking-based outfit.
Hart had been due to join Williams and Alex Albon, but was swayed to stay after Verstappen expressed him as his preference, according to reports.
Singapore podium celebration a hint at proposed plan?
At the Singapore Grand Prix, Red Bull sent Lambiase up to the podium as the team’s representative after Verstappen won.
Verstappen says it was a surprise to him, and perhaps hinted at the wider plan for Red Bull to replace Lambiase at several rounds at the end of this season.
“I didn’t expect that,” Verstappen said in the post-race press conference in Singapore, after celebrating his first win at Marina Bay.
Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, 2026 Singapore GP
© XPB Images
“I remember him saying to me in Vegas last year, ‘This might be the last time I stand on the podium’.
I said, ‘Don’t be silly, we’re going to win together many more times’. But I think I jinxed him with that.”
While Lambiase is due to sit out three races as Verstappen’s engineer, he will still be present on-site at those rounds.
Lewis joined the Crash.net team in August of 2024 having been a journalist for five years covering MotoGP for the Motorsport Network. In February of 2026, he became Head of Editorial.