1 Year Before Uniting With Max Verstappen, Gianpiero Lambiase Was Not Only Hired For Sebastian Vettel but Was Examined By Him Too

Before teaming up with Max Verstappen, Red Bull hired Gianpiero Lambiase to partner up with Sebastian Vettel. This has become a very well-known fact as of late. But now, Mark Hughes of The Race F1 podcast revealed that Vettel even interviewed Lambiase, before he joined Red Bull.

Lambiase is currently one of the most recognizable race engineers in Formula 1. His interactions with Verstappen on the team radio are well-loved by fans, and he is a huge reason behind the Dutchman’s on-track success. By now it is clear to everyone why Red Bull hired him back in 2015.

Going by the recent example of the Spa-Francorchamps race, Lambiase seems to be one of the few people who can handle Verstappen and his anger in Red Bull. Team principal Christian Horner even called him the Jason Statham of their team. Hence, it is understandable why Vettel and Red Bull wanted him all the way back in 2015.

Vettel interviewed Lambiase before he was hired for him at Red Bull

Following the end of the 2014 season, Lambiase was set to leave Force India and Sergio Perez. Eventually, Red Bull identified him as a target as Vettel’s then-race engineer Guillaume Rocquelin moved to the role of head of race engineering at Red Bull.

Additionally, it was Vettel, who was in charge of interviewing his own future race engineer. Hughes, speaking about Lambiase’s onboarding process said, “He was actually interviewed for the job as well by Red Bull personnel. By Sebastian Vettel whose race engineer he was going to be before Seb [Vettel] left and went to Ferrari.”

Before joining the Verstappen at Red Bull, he was Daniil Kvyat’s race engineer. He couldn’t work with Vettel because by the team he joined, the German star moved to Maranello to drive for Ferrari. The ongoing 2023 F1 season is Lambiase’s eighth season at Red Bull, and he is one of the key people behind Verstappen and his team’s recent massive success.

Is Lambiase entirely responsible for Max Verstappen succeeding?

Max Verstappen has often mentioned the importance of having Lambiase in the team. His direct and no-nonsense attitude has helped Verstappen a lot in races, even if it leads to occasional arguments.

In the Belgian GP press conference, when asked if Gianpiero Lambiase was an instrumental figure in his success, the defending champion agreed. However, when asked if he would be as successful without him, the 25-year-old avoided answering the question.

The duo shares a unique relationship. Horner and whole of Red Bull appreciate what the dynamic they have. In fact, Horner often describes their relationship as a ‘marriage‘, and has joked about it very often.