Another Red Bull F1 chief could be about to follow GP out the door

Red Bull

Another Red Bull F1 chief could be about to follow GP out the door

Could Red Bull lose another team member?

Sheona Mountford F1 Journalist

Motorsport journalist working in F1 since 2024.

Thursday 9 April 2026 21:57

A Red Bull F1 chief could also follow Gianpiero 'GP' Lambiase out of the door after recent reports suggested their job is under threat.

Max Verstappen's race engineer, GP, is understood to be leaving Red Bull, and instead will move across to McLaren to support team principal Andrea Stella in a senior role at the Woking-based outfit.

Couple that with reports Verstappen is also considering retirement, the picture isn't great for Red Bull at present.

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Now on top of that, it has been suggested that pressure is building on technical director Pierre Wache. According to F1-Insider, the French engineer is under fire for the RB22’s problems with the car not only overweight but also practically impossible to handle.

Far from the Red Bull-Ford engine being the main cause of mischief, the issues lie primarily with the chassis and aerodynamic setup, which have cost the team up to 0.8 seconds versus faster rivals in recent weeks.

Excess weight is a major irritation for Red Bull with the extra mass alone penalising them by about 0.4 seconds and internally, the car has even been dubbed 'Fat Bull.'

This weight issue, combined with recurring balance issues nearly every weekend, means the challenges are mounting for the Milton-Keynes based squad.

Was Wache reason for Skinner exit?

F1-Insider state that back in December, Wache claimed the RB22 was a full second quicker than the sister team’s car (Racing Bulls) - an assertion at odds with recent performance trends.

Head designer Craig Skinner’s unexpected exit just before the season reportedly followed repeated clashes with Wache, with these disagreements contributing to his sudden departure.

Red Bull aims to turn things around however, with a major update package in Miami and propel their drivers towards the top teams. Unfortunately, when new parts were brought to Suzuka they ended up slowing the RB22 instead of boosting its pace.

The report now states that the Miami GP is now a make-or-break moment for Wache, where they write: "It won’t be easy to turn things around. The new parts intended to get the Red Bull back on track at Suzuka have actually made the RB22 slower rather than faster. The race in Miami is therefore already being seen as a make-or-break moment for Wache."

F1 Red Bull Pierre Gasly Gianpiero Lambiase