Max Verstappen is like a 'little brother' to his race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase

Max Verstappen and his race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase have built a strong bond over the past few years of working together at Red Bull. The two have been working together ever since Verstappen replaced Daniil Kvyat at Red Bull back in 2016.

Speaking on The Talking Bulls podcast, Lambiase said the connection between him and Max Verstappen has grown as they have spent eight years alongside each other. He explained:

"I think it's only natural after seven, eight years that we know each other inside out and we know what triggers the other one or how to put the arm around the other one's shoulder."

Furthermore, he claims that it was tough for Verstappen when Red Bull didn't have a competitive car before 2021. Lambiase recalled how the young Dutchman had many frustrating race weekends since he was unable to fight for the championship and said:

"I think we know how to manage ourselves out of a difficult situation and also enjoy the better situations, perhaps until three years ago when the car wasn't quite as competitive as we the team would've liked, especially Max because at that point you could see his frustration coming through already that he wasn't able to compete for the Championship and we had a few ups and downs."

Lastly, GP stated his bond with Max Verstappen cemented itself in 2021 when the latter fought valiantly with Lewis Hamilton to clinch his first world title. In the end, he claimed that he saw Verstappen as his younger brother.

"Since 2020, 2021, it was so intense and the bond was cemented that year and then 2022, 2023 has just been a continuation of that, I see him as my little brother."

---

Max Verstappen's race engineer shares his biggest fear

Verstappen's race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase is quite famous among the F1 fanbase for his direct and honest communications with the Dutchman during races. Speaking on The Talking Bulls podcast, Lambiase recently claimed that his biggest fear is about other teams improving and competing with Red Bull.

Lambiase said:

“My biggest fear is the moment that we do have increased competition. And we’re not winning every race because you see how he’s treating me at the moment! And he’s winning every race. So that’d be I’m really not looking forward to it again!”

Max Verstappen is currently leading the drivers' championship table with 524 points.