David Coulthard explains why F1 race engineer relationship is “more than professional”

Former Formula 1 driver David Coulthard has explained the importance of the relationship between a driver and their race engineer.

This follows the news that Max Verstappen's long-serving race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase will join McLaren as chief racing officer no later than 2028.

Lambiase's impending exit has raised questions over the four-time champion's future with Red Bull, after Verstappen's previous comments that he would not want to work with any other race engineer. 

"A race engineer is not only someone that understands vehicle dynamics, aerodynamics, aero models, and all of the other good things that you need to deal with when they're setting up a race car, but they're also part psychologist," Coulthard explained on the Up To Speed podcast.

"Because over the course of a season, a driver will have weekends when he's feeling on a high, other weekends when he's feeling on a low, just a natural ebb and flow of life. They've got to be able to know when to give them a kick and when to give them a tickle and everything in between.

"And I think that some of the great driver engineering pairings that we can recall over the years have seen that relationship be displayed publicly."

Oracle Red Bull Racing Team Race Engineer Gianpiero Lambiase walks in the paddock

Photo by: Kym Illman / Getty Images

The former Red Bull driver added: "The importance of the relationship is absolutely clear. It's more than a professional relationship. There's got to be absolute trust. The driver has to believe 100% his race engineer is doing everything he can to fight his corner."

It has not been confirmed who will take Lambiase's place at Red Bull, but Verstappen fully backed the Briton's decision. 

"We’ve spoken about it, and when he told me what the opportunity was, I said: you’d be stupid not to take it," Verstappen said at a Viaplay event.

"It’s an incredible opportunity for him, not just in terms of the role but also for his future. You have to think about your family and long-term security as well."