Zak Brown optimistic Lambiase will leave Red Bull for McLaren in 2027

McLaren CEO Zak Brown has expressed confidence that Gianpiero Lambiase, Max Verstappen’s longtime race engineer at Red Bull, will make his move to Woking in 2027 — potentially a full year ahead of schedule.

“I’m optimistic we’ll see him in papaya at some point next year,” Brown said, suggesting the transition could happen sooner than the “no later than 2028” timeline McLaren stated when the appointment was first announced in April.

The hire McLaren confirmed in April

McLaren officially announced in April that Lambiase would join the team as Chief Racing Officer, reporting directly to Team Principal Andrea Stella. The statement described the role as carrying “overall leadership of the race team” — responsibilities currently handled by Stella on top of his existing duties as team principal.

At the time, McLaren framed the signing as part of a broader strategy to deepen its talent pool, pointing to previous hires such as Rob Marshall and Will Courtenay as evidence of the team’s ambition. “The team’s ability to attract and secure top talent, like Lambiase… is a testament to the strategic vision and culture that are integrally embodied in the McLaren Mastercard F1 Team,” the club’s statement read.

Why Lambiase is considered such a significant addition

Lambiase has spent more than a decade working alongside Verstappen, navigating an extraordinary volume of high-pressure decisions across race weekends that have yielded four consecutive Drivers’ Championships for the Dutchman. His experience managing complex in-race strategy and driver communication at the sharp end of the grid is precisely what McLaren believes will add another layer of expertise to a team now competing for championships.

His arrival will also allow Stella to step back from the operational demands of leading the race team and concentrate more fully on his role as team principal — a structural change McLaren sees as important as it looks to consolidate its position at the front of the grid.

Lambiase has not yet publicly commented on the timeline of his departure from Red Bull.