Max Verstappen race engineer linked with shock Aston Martin move – report

Gianpiero Lambiase, Max Verstappen’s long-serving race engineer at Red Bull, has been linked with a surprise move to Aston Martin ahead of the F1 2026 season.

Lambiase has been a key member of Verstappen’s inner circle since the Dutchman joined Red Bull in early 2016.

Rumour: Max Verstappen race engineer in talks with Aston Martin

Verstappen collected victory on debut for Red Bull at the 2016 Spanish Grand Prix before going on to win four consecutive world championships between 2021 and 2024.

The 28-year-old narrowly missed out on a fifth title at the 2025 season finale in Abu Dhabi, where Verstappen fell two points short as McLaren driver Lando Norris secured his maiden world championship.

Lambiase cut an emotional figure on the Red Bull pit wall and appeared to be sobbing at the end of the race at Yas Marina.

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Lambiase’s tearful reaction raised speculation that Abu Dhabi would prove to be his last race as Verstappen’s race engineer amid rumours of a potential new role within the Red Bull team.

However, it has emerged that Lambiase is in talks over a switch to Aston Martin ahead of next season.

A report by the Race has claimed that talks have taken place between Lambiase and Aston Martin over a senior position at the Silverstone-based team.

Although an agreement is reportedly yet to be reached, it has been suggested that Lambiase could join the team in a role at ‘team principal or CEO level.’

A move to Aston Martin would see Lambiase return to the team – then competing under the Jordan name – with which he started his F1 career in 2005.

He acted as race engineer to Vitantonio Liuzzi, Paul di Resta and Sergio Perez under the Silverstone team’s Force India guise before joining Red Bull in 2015, initially working alongside Daniil Kvyat before Verstappen was promoted from the Toro Rosso junior squad the following year.

A switch to Aston Martin would also see Lambiase reunite with Adrian Newey, who also played an instrumental role in Verstappen’s success at Red Bull until his departure in 2024.

Aston Martin, which will enter a new partnership with Red Bull’s outgoing engine partner Honda from 2026, announced last month that Newey will assume the position of team principal ahead of next season.

Newey’s new role came amid a team reshuffle with his predecessor, Andy Cowell, becoming chief strategy officer from 2026 to oversee the three-way relationship between Aston Martin, Honda and fuel supplier Aramco.

Speaking at the penultimate race in 2025 in Qatar, Newey insisted that car development will remain his chief focus in 2026, telling Sky F1 that he is “determined not to dilute that.”

Newey’s comments raised suggestions that he could seek to delegate in his new role by building a team of people to help manage the responsibilities traditionally associated with F1 team principals.

Newey, who turned 67 on Friday, added that his new role will not significantly alter his workload as he plans to attend “all the early races anyway” at the start of 2026, indicating that his stint as Aston Martin team principal could prove temporary.

Newey has already been reunited with a number of former Red Bull colleagues since officially linking up with Aston Martin in March.

As reported by PlanetF1.com at the time, Aston Martin recruited ex-Red Bull simulations guru Giles Wood in June just weeks after Newey highlighted the team’s simulation tools as an area of weakness during his first trackside appearance of 2025 in Monaco.

Meanwhile, PlanetF1.com exclusively revealed in September that Aston Martin had signed former Red Bull and Racing Bulls strategist Nick Roberts.

The potential departure of Lambiase would come as a blow to Verstappen, who has lost a number of key people in his inner circle over recent months.

Parent company Red Bull GmbH announced earlier this month that long-serving senior adviser Helmut Marko, who is known to have a close relationship with Verstappen, is to leave his role at the end of 2025.

As revealed by PlanetF1.com in October, meanwhile, Verstappen’s number-one mechanic Matt Caller is to join the Audi F1 team, which is spearheaded by former Red Bull sporting director Jonathan Wheatley.

Simon Rennie, Daniel Ricciardo’s former Red Bull race engineer, could step up as the new voice in Verstappen’s ear for 2026 in the event of Lambiase’s exit.

Rennie, who has held a factory-based role over recent years, made a brief return to the pit wall in 2025 by deputising for the absent Lambiase at the Austrian and Belgian grands prix.

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Verstappen paid a glowing tribute to Lambiase in the aftermath of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, describing his race engineer as “my friend.”

He told PlanetF1.com and other media outlets in the post-race press conference: “It’s been an emotional year.

“Forget about the results this year. I also don’t want to go too much into detail, but it’s been tough.

“But I’m very happy to be able to work with someone that passionate.

“Of course, he is my race engineer, but I see him as my friend. We have lived through so many emotional things together and fantastic achievements.

“I’m sure he was a bit emotional after the flag. I’m really looking forward to leaving here and catching up with him because it’s not been easy at times for him.

“I’m just very proud to be able to work with someone that good.

“A proper example of someone that never gave up this season, even through the difficult times.”

Verstappen himself was briefly linked with a move to Aston Martin in April despite being under contract with Red Bull until the end of the 2028 season.

In a statement issued to PlanetF1.com ahead of the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, however, Aston Martin reaffirmed its commitment to its existing driver pairing of Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll.

An Aston Martin spokesperson said: “It’s normal for the media to speculate on driver market, but we have an amazing driver line-up that we are committed to and who are under contract for 2026 and beyond.

“Our focus is on delivering for our drivers by giving them a more consistent and competitive car.

“When we do, they are both capable of delivering great results.”

Oliver Mintzlaff, Red Bull’s chief executive of corporate projects and new investments, recently aired his confidence that Verstappen will “end his career” with his current team.

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