Verstappen reveals 'tough' relationship with key Red Bull F1 team member
Verstappen reveals 'tough' relationship with key Red Bull F1 team member
Max Verstappen has admitted that he and his race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase 'get on so well', despite 'tough moments' between the pair.
The Dutchman has been known to be quite vocal over the radio, particularly towards Lambiase, during his time at Red Bull.
At the Belgian Grand Prix earlier this year, Lambiase told Verstappen to 'use your head a bit more' after the world champion had disobeyed orders to manage his tyres, instead opting to set blistering lap times when out in front.
During the unique warm-up session ahead of sprint qualifying at the Qatar GP, the pair shared an expletive-laden exchange as Lambiase told the 26-year-old 'there was more learning' to be done after Verstappen had aborted his lap early.
In the end, Verstappen went on to clinch his third consecutive world championship title during the sprint race, much to his team's delight.
Now, he has revealed the importance of his relationship with 'strong character' Lambiase.
“[It's] Incredibly important," Verstappen told Sky Sports F1.
"I think a race engineer really needs to understand you and it’s very rare to have such a strong connection I think with an engineer.
"We hit the ground running quite in a crazy way, winning our first race together.
“You have your tough moments as well, because I’m a strong character, he’s a strong character, but that’s what I like because I will say to him when it’s bad and I will say to him when it’s good and he says that to me as well. That’s why I think we get on so well.
"That’s why sometimes we get quite vocal on the radio and then people sometimes think that we don’t like each other but we actually have a lot of respect for each other and we always want the best in every single situation."
Verstappen: I know what to do
Despite his achievements putting him into the realm of some of the all-time greats of Formula 1, there is still learning for Verstappen to do, and improvements he can make.
At just 26, he has the chance to chase down Lewis Hamilton's all-time race victory record, and maybe even push towards Hamilton and Michael Schumacher's record of seven world titles.
Verstappen believes that all of his experience in F1 is enough to get him through races, without the extra input from Lambiase.
"He really tries to also coach me through the race," he continued.
"Of course, I know a lot of things myself when I’m driving but it’s always nice to have that voice.
“Sometimes in my head while driving I’m like 'Okay, I know what to do' but it’s still nice to have him in the background."
READ MORE: F1 Race Engineers: The stars of team radio with Hamilton, Verstappen and co
Related
Change your timezone:
Latest News
F1 News Today: Incredible Verstappen exit clause reignites F1 rival talks as Mercedes milestone reveals shock RED livery
- 42 minutes ago
Horner outlines Ricciardo target to save F1 dream as major Newey announcement made - GPFans F1 Recap
- Yesterday 23:57
Mercedes reveal shock RED livery to celebrate historic milestone
- Yesterday 22:57
Ricciardo makes five-race admission in bid to survive F1 axe
- Yesterday 21:57
Red Bull is 'burning' after Horner and Marko display
- Yesterday 20:57
Red Bull announce strong statement over Newey departure claims
- Yesterday 19:57
Related news
Verstappen 'to meet Mercedes over SHOCK 2025 move as Red Bull exit clause revealed'
Verstappen takes F1 swipe at Hamilton and rivals with ruthless remark
Incredible statistic puts Verstappen AHEAD of Hamilton record
Horner reveals 'unhuman' Verstappen secret
F1 Standings
Drivers
- Oliver Bearman
- Charles Leclerc
- Carlos Sainz
- Lando Norris
- Oscar Piastri
- Pierre Gasly
- Esteban Ocon
- Sergio Pérez
- Max Verstappen
- Alexander Albon
- Logan Sargeant
- Lewis Hamilton
- George Russell
- Nico Hülkenberg
- Kevin Magnussen
- Fernando Alonso
- Lance Stroll
- Valtteri Bottas
- Zhou Guanyu
- Daniel Ricciardo
- Yuki Tsunoda
Races
- Gulf Air Grand Prix of Bahrain 2024
- Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Australia 2024
- MSC Cruises Grand Prix of Japan 2024
- Grand Prix of China 2024
- Miami Grand Prix 2024
- Gran Premio dell'Emilia Romagna 2024
- Grand Prix of Monaco 2024
- Grand Prix du Canada 2024
- Gran Premio de España 2024
- Grand Prix of Austria 2024
- Grand Prix of Great Britain 2024
- Grand Prix of Hungary 2024
- Grand Prix of Belgium 2024
- Heineken Dutch Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Italy 2024
- Grand Prix of Azerbaijan 2024
- Grand Prix of Singapore 2024
- Grand Prix of the United States 2024
- Gran Premio de la Ciudad de Mexico 2024
- Grande Prêmio de São Paulo 2024
- Heineken Silver Las Vegas Grand Prix 2024
- Qatar Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi 2024
About GPFans
GPFans is a multi-platform, multi-language brand dedicated to Formula One coverage. We bring you all the ins and outs of the sport, 24/7, everything from up-to-the-minute news and features to the latest viral stories and clips.We believe that a new generation of exciting, outspoken drivers will make F1 more popular than ever before, and we want to give our users access to as much of their heroes as possible, on and off the track. From Lewis Hamilton to Max Verstappen, Daniel Ricciardo to Sebastian Vettel, we provide in-depth analysis of every every Grand Prix in the season, from Australia to Abu Dhabi.
With Formula One under the new ownership of Liberty Media, how the sport is being covered is evolving, and GPFans will look to be at the heart of this progression into new media, as one of the fastest-growing sites covering the king of motorsports.
Follow us on your favorite social media channel
Corporate & Media
Innovatieweg 20C7007 CD, Doetinchem, Netherlands
+31645516860