VERSTAPPEN: “WE CANNOT FORCE PEOPLE TO STAY AT RED BULL”
Max Verstappen spoke to Autosport about the departures of some key figures from the Red Bull Formula 1 team.
Three-time World Champion Max Verstappen stated that it is unrealistic to expect Red Bull to keep all its key members together in light of the recent high-profile departures.
The legendary designer Adrian Newey announced his departure to Aston Martin in May, while Red Bull’s sporting director Jonathan Wheatley is moving to Sauber/Audi, and strategy chief Will Courtenay will join McLaren in the future. The exits of these figures come after a turbulent year for Red Bull. Tensions behind the scenes in management first became apparent during the pre-season tests in Bahrain when an investigation into team principal Christian Horner’s alleged misconduct was leaked to the public, which was later denied.
Before this, Red Bull had lost designer Rob Marshall, who played a key role at its closest rival McLaren in the championship.
At that time, Verstappen warned that due to Red Bull’s internal turmoil, those he referred to as the “foundational pillars” of the team’s success, especially his mentor Helmut Marko, might leave the team. In statements made during the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, Verstappen said, “I am also part of this process. I signed until 2028, so it’s very important for some foundational pillars to remain in place.”
Speaking to Autosport six months later in Singapore, Verstappen noted that this did not happen and that Red Bull now prefers to promote from within to fill the gaps left by departing employees.
Verstappen’s long-time race engineer, Gianpiero Lambiase, is among those who have been given broader responsibilities under the revised management structure. However, Verstappen acknowledges that Red Bull will always struggle to keep its championship-winning team together, as rivals aggressively try to poach key personnel.
Verstappen jokingly said, “We didn’t really succeed at that!” before giving a more direct response. The Dutch driver added, “As I always say, I would prefer everyone to stay, but in the end, you cannot force people to stay. If you make them stay when they really do not want to be here, if they are frustrated or not getting exactly what they want, perhaps it would be better for them to seek a new challenge elsewhere.”
“However, it would be better if everything remained the same for the team as a whole.”
“Successful teams have always been like this; people start to tear them apart. You can see this in every sport. Some people are getting such big offers from other teams that this also plays a role,” he added.
Earlier this year, some key figures, like performance engineering director Ben Waterhouse and aerodynamic director Enrico Balbo, extended their contracts. Therefore, Verstappen is confident that Red Bull has the right technical leadership to move the team forward in the post-Newey era.
He mentioned that he has a strong relationship with technical director Pierre Wache, stating, “I talk a lot with Pierre. Whenever I go to the factory, I always have a meeting with him. He is very motivated, and I enjoy being involved. Things are going quite well; it’s just that the results are not what we want right now. It’s up to us as a team to turn this around.”
“I believe the people know what they are doing; they have already shown it. There are also very good people in other teams, but I don’t think that is the problem right now. We just went down the wrong path, so it’s time to hit the reset button and go in a different direction.”
“At the end of the day, it’s not just two or three people that make the difference. It’s a collective effort. Everyone needs to perform their role well and work hard; that’s the most important thing,” he concluded.
