As the Formula 1 2023 season comes to an end many have wished to see Max Verstappen and the others fighting for a race, however, there are a lot of fans who are going to miss the “old couple relationship” that the Red Bull star shares with his race engineer. After the recent season and the frustration between the two that was heard on the radio, Gianpiero said that he is worried for himself in case the competition grows.
Max Verstappen and Gianpiero Lambiase’s relationship has been known to be one of the most special relationships on the grid. Just like Lewis Hamilton and Toto Wolff who have shared a long history together at Mercedes and have a huge part of history in Formula 1, Verstappen too has a similar kind of relationship with his engineer although they are seen bickering back and forth during the races.
One of the recent moments included the Dutchman asking his engineer to stop talking while he was braking which caused many to laugh at the scene. The race engineer being very steady-minded and straightforward with the Dutchman which has helped the Red Bull star achieve a lot has also led to them being called as a “married couple” by Christian Horner.
GP jokes about the fear of having increased competition:
“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 there.” 😭
[Talking Bull Podcast] #F1 pic.twitter.com/iAGvVcxZKt
— RBR Daily (@RBR_Daily) November 7, 2023
However, recently the race engineer feared that increased competition would cause Verstappen to start treating him worse than he already does. In an interview, he said, “My biggest fear is the moment that we do have increased competition and we are not winning every race because you see how he is treating me at the moment and he is winning every race there.”
The two just laughed it off nonetheless it sure seems like the relationship is not any different when they are off track.
Gianpiero Lambiase talks about the first time he met Max Verstappen
Max Verstappen and his race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase have a great relationship on and off tracks as they are seen bickering with each other like an old married couple fighting, according to the RB boss, their relationship and trust in each other has formed throughout the years. However, it was when the Dutchman was only 18 years old and had moved to Red Bull that the race engineer had first met him.
It was all thanks to Sebastian Vettel who decided to bring Lambiase to Redbull and he soon went on to become Max Verstappen’s engineer. Thanks to Vettel we are now witnessing a power couple dynamic between the two. However, when the 18-year-old rookie just walked into Red Bull his thoughts about the Dutchman were quite different than what they are now.
He has witnessed him from being an “uncut diamond” to becoming a three-time World champion. However, he talked about the first time he met Verstappen. He recalled saying,
7 years of Max Verstappen and Gianpiero Lambiase ❤️🔥💪🏼 pic.twitter.com/tc9Db8tNGD
— rikka¹ ☃️ (@maxiejpg) October 8, 2023
“When he arrived he was incredibly raw, an uncut diamond, if you like. There is no doubt he’s matured as a driver and as a person. Year after year, it’s fair to say that the team has made a contribution, and I’d be upset if he said otherwise but he has really evolved into a polished driver in all aspects.”
Needless to say, Lambiase was proud of who he would be managing on the race tracks and soon all of his concerns, beliefs, and faith came to life as Max started dominating the sport year after year and gave his race engineer a chance to witness an unstoppable champion in the making in all his glory.