Max Verstappen has revealed that he encouraged his race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase to accept an offer to join Formula 1 rival McLaren.

Last week the unexpected announcement was made that Lambiase, Verstappen’s long-serving race engineer and Red Bull’s head of racing, would be joining McLaren from 2028 when his current contract expires.

Lambiase is the latest high-profile figure to depart Red Bull and join McLaren, following former chief designer Rob Marshall and ex-head of strategy Will Courtenay. Red Bull has also lost legendary designer Adrian Newey and its former sporting director Jonathan Wheatley to rivals in recent years.

The shock news of Lambiase’s exit raised questions about Verstappen’s future, with the four-time world champion already suggesting he could walk away from F1 at the end of the season because of his dissatisfaction with the new rules.

Speaking at a Viaplay event in Amsterdam on Thursday evening, Verstappen said Lambiase sought his council about McLaren’s offer – which is reported to include a huge salary increase – before making his final decision.

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“He told me what kind of offer he’d received. I said: ‘You’d be daft not to take it,’” Verstappen told Viaplay.

“We’ve already achieved everything together and then he gets such a fantastic offer, especially with his family in mind and the security it would bring him.

“He asked me for my approval, so to speak, and I told him he absolutely had to go for it. He really wanted to hear that from me.”

Verstappen’s comments come after his father, Jos, revealed that he and his son knew in advance about Lambiase’s planned Red Bull exit and supported the decision.

“We knew for a while, and we also knew when it was going to happen,” Verstappen Sr told RaceXpress.

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“We have another year and a half to two years to work with him. It’s a huge opportunity for him, so we understand. We also told him to do it and grab it with both hands. Beyond that, it’s up to Red Bull to replace him. We will see.”

Verstappen Sr also suggested that his son will continue racing in F1 despite conceding “things have changed”.

“I think things have changed,” he said. “Especially after four championships, you’ve achieved a lot together. The final decision is up to Max, but I think he’ll just carry on.”

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