Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies has claimed Max Verstappen's race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase will become McLaren team principal.
Red Bull announced in March that Lambiase was leaving his role as head of race engineering and Verstappen's engineer to join McLaren, who said he would take up the position of chief racing officer in "no later than 2028".
McLaren also explained at the time of the announcement that the role of chief racing officer already existed within their structure, and that the duties were currently being handled by Andrea Stella in addition to his responsibilities as team principal.
However, discussing Lambiase's departure at the Miami Grand Prix - Formula 1's first race since the news broke - Mekies told Your Site F1 that his current employee "is going to be a team principal" at McLaren.
Reacting to a question about Lambiase becoming the latest key figure to leave Red Bull in recent times, Mekies said: "We don't want to be defensive about it. We have lost quite a few key people in the last four, five years, it is very true.
"We take it very seriously and everything we do is to try to make sure that we have the best environment to attract, to develop and to retain our people. I'm confident it's an area we will succeed in.
"Is it going to be a linear way to it with nobody leaving anymore? No. GP (Lambiase) had an extraordinary opportunity. You know, he is going to be a team principal there. It's not something that I can do anything else than wishing him well."
Amid initial doubt over whether Mekies' comments could had been misconstrued, Red Bull confirmed to Your Site F1 that the Frenchman believes Lambiase will become McLaren team principal.
McLaren chief executive Zak Brown insisted that Mekies "knows something I don't" when the Red Bull boss' comments were put to him later on Friday.
After being shown Mekies' comments, Brown said: "He knows something I don't, apparently.
"I've got one (a team principal), and I've got a great one. I got the best one in the pit lane in Andrea Stella. I couldn't be happier than (I am with) Andrea."
Stella has done a superb job since being appointed as McLaren team principal in December 2022, overseeing a remarkable turnaround that has seen the Woking squad win successive constructors' titles, along with a drivers' title for Lando Norris last year.
Brown added: "My job as CEO is to get the best talent, to think long term, to have the most strength on pit wall or at the factory, in design, whatever the case may be.
"Andrea has done a fantastic job, our technical team. GP is a huge talent, so when the opportunity presented itself to strengthen our racing team, that's exactly what we're going to do - whether it's a racing driver, an engineer, a strategist, whatever the case may be. So, I'm very happy he's going to be joining us."
Some uncertainty remains around exactly when Lambiase will make the move, with McLaren having expressed an interest in making it happen before 2028.
Their statement confirming Lambiase's hire said: "The role of the chief racing officer already exists within the team's structure with overall leadership of the race team. These duties are currently managed by Andrea Stella in addition to his role as team principal.
"Lambiase is the latest hire designed to strengthen and support the talent pool that exists at McLaren Mastercard, while also reaffirming the team's long-term commitment to confirming its position as a championship-winning team."
Saturday May 2
2.55pm: F2 Sprint
4pm: Miami GP Sprint build-up
5pm: MIAMI GP SPRINT
6.30pm: Ted's Sprint Notebook
8pm: Miami GP Qualifying build-up*
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Sunday May 3
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*Also on Your Site Main Event
Formula 1 is in Miami for a Sprint weekend as the 2026 season resumes, watch live on Your Site F1 with Sunday's Grand Prix at 9pm.
