McLaren F1 boss responds to Ferrari signing rumours

Andrea Stella, McLaren, Bahrain, 2026 — Photo: © IMAGO

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McLaren F1 boss responds to Ferrari signing rumours

Andrea Stella was linked to Ferrari

By Sheona Mountford.

Monday 20 April 2026 21:00

McLaren F1 team principal Andrea Stella has been linked to a Ferrari switch, finally responding to the rumours in a recent interview.

The Italian engineer used to work for Ferrari from 2000 until 2014, working with Michael Schumacher, Kimi Raikkonen and Fernando Alonso.

Following the announcement that Red Bull's head of racing and Max Verstappen's race engineer Gianpiero 'GP' Lambiase would be moving to McLaren, rumours that Stella was Ferrari bound and that GP had been brought in to replace him as team principal quickly followed.

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Dutch and De Limburger journalist Jacky Martens claimed that: "From what I understand, he’s [Stella] already committed by signing a pre-contract with Ferrari. It’s certainly a bitter pill to swallow. The Italian has a strong history with Ferrari, having worked there as a performance engineer with Michael Schumacher and Kimi Raikkonen, and he helped secure several titles."

Stella denies Ferrari rumours

The team principal was asked if the rumours that followed the GP announcement bothered him, to which Stella replied: "Honestly, some of the recent rumours, including those regarding astronomical salaries and mythical pre-contracts, have made me smile.

"It almost seems as though the ‘silly season’, which usually begins before summer, has arrived early! I’m quite used to this sort of thing by now and I take with a smile.

"It almost looks like that some envious pastry chef has tried to spoil the preparation of a good dessert at the McLaren patisserie. However, we do know very well how to distinguish the good ingredients from the poisoned biscuits..."

F1 Ferrari McLaren Gianpiero Lambiase Andrea Stella