Red Bull has appointed Tom Hart as Max Verstappen’s new race engineer, succeeding Gianpiero Lambiase. This change follows Lambiase’s confirmed departure from the team to join McLaren. The transition marks a significant personnel shift within the Milton Keynes outfit’s engineering structure.
Lambiase, who has served as Verstappen’s race engineer since May 2016, will move to McLaren as Chief Racing Officer. His current contract with Red Bull extends until the end of the 2027 season. He is expected to commence his new role with McLaren no later than 2028.
Tom Hart has been an integral part of Red Bull Racing, serving as Max Verstappen’s performance engineer since January 2020. His promotion to race engineer ensures continuity within Verstappen’s immediate engineering team.
Reports indicated Hart was initially set to join Williams as Alex Albon’s race engineer. However, an agreement was reached for him to remain at Red Bull and take on this elevated position.
Max Verstappen personally confirmed Hart’s succession ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix earlier this season. Verstappen stated that the team considered options after Lambiase’s impending departure became known.
The four-time F1 champion noted that Hart expressed a desire to stay with Red Bull in a different capacity. Discussions around the Miami Grand Prix solidified the plan for Hart to assume the race engineer role.
Lambiase is currently still in his role alongside Verstappen for the remainder of the 2026 season. Hart may deputise for Lambiase at certain races this year to facilitate a smooth handover and build their working relationship.
Speculation had suggested Lambiase might eventually replace Andrea Stella as McLaren Team Principal. However, McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown dismissed these claims as unfounded.
Brown clarified that Lambiase will work in support of Stella, focusing on leadership aspects within the team. McLaren is prepared to wait until 2028 for Lambiase to join if his gardening leave requires it.
This engineering change is part of broader personnel movements at Red Bull. The team announced other technical reshuffles in April, including Ben Waterhouse becoming chief performance and design engineer.
Andrea Landi also joined Red Bull from sister team Racing Bulls on July 1 as head of performance. These adjustments aim to reinforce the team’s focus on performance and innovation.
Red Bull has experienced a challenging start to the 2026 Formula 1 season. The team currently sits sixth in the Constructors’ Championship, 119 points behind Mercedes after three races.
The team is also undertaking the significant project of developing its own power units in partnership with Ford for the 2026 regulations. This represents a substantial technical challenge.
