The future of Max Verstappen at Red Bull has been thrown into further doubt after his long-serving race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase was tipped to join rivals McLaren. Former Formula 1 driver Johnny Herbert believes the move is a telling sign that the four-time world champion is preparing to leave the team.
Verstappen has publicly acknowledged he is considering his options, with a release clause in his contract allowing him to depart if certain performance targets are not met. Red Bull have struggled at the start of the season, with Verstappen collecting just 12 points from the opening three rounds, making it increasingly unlikely he will be second or higher in the standings by the summer break.
Herbert told Mirror Sport: "It's not the Red Bull of old. I can see why there has been the shift and why Lambiase is moving because of all the changes that are happening. Max, we know he's not very happy about the situation. Is this move almost confirmation in a way that Max is on his way at the end of the season too?" He suggested Verstappen could join one of three manufacturers: Ferrari, McLaren or Mercedes.
Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies already faces the task of replacing a number of key personnel, including chief car designer Craig Skinner, who resigned in February, and speculation that strategy chief Hannah Schmitz could also depart. Herbert believes replacing Verstappen would be Mekies' greatest challenge, but he expects it to happen. "For me, for sure, it's going to happen at some point," he said.
However, Herbert does not see Verstappen retiring from the sport. "I don't think he'll leave the sport – I'd be very surprised if that happened. Max just needs that freedom to enjoy life and enjoy driving. He's not quite getting it at the moment with the way that Formula 1 has gone."
