Red Bull reshuffles its F1 car design department, promotes from junior team after senior engineer departures

Red Bull said it was acting to boost its “focus on performance and innovation” Mark Thompson/Getty Images Share articleRed Bull has announced a series of internal promotions to its Formula 1 car design team after a collection of high-profile engineering exits continued with Max Verstappen’s engineer choosing to move to McLaren. The team that Verstappen led to four successive drivers’ world titles between 2021-2024 and two constructors’ titles in the same period (2022 and 2023) has also acted after its underwhelming start to F1’s new car design era. It was announced last week that Verstappen’s engineer — and Red Bull current head of racing — GianPiero Lambiase will join McLaren once his deal with his current squad expires in 2028. The two teams could reach a deal to allow Lambiase to join McLaren sooner. Friday’s Red Bull announcement was billed as it acting to boost its “focus on performance and innovation” within its car design technical department, according to a team statement. The statement was headed: “Red Bull Racing strengthens technical leadership team.” This will continue to be led by team technical director Pierre Wache. But from now on, Wache will be supported by Red Bull’s former head of performance engineering, Ben Waterhouse, who has been promoted to what the Red Bull statement called “an expanded leadership role as chief performance and design engineer, with overarching responsibility across design and vehicle performance.” Then, from July 1, current Racing Bulls deputy technical director Andrea Landi will move across to Red Bull to work as its head of performance — under Waterhouse. Such an internal switch mirrors current Red Bull team boss Laurent Mekies being promoted from Red Bull’s junior team to its senior squad after ex-team principal Christian Horner was sacked in July 2025. Red Bull sits sixth out of 11 teams in the 2026 constructors’ standings and has not finished higher then sixth in any of the three races held this year. This has contributed to significant focus on the team along with Verstappen’s suggestions he may walk away from F1 at the end of 2026 due to his dissatisfaction with the new engine rules, plus the high number of senior staff from its recent championship-winning period leaving the team in the last two years. This list includes former Red Bull chief designer Rob Marshall, who joined McLaren in 2024, ex-team technical leader Adrian Newey and former Red Bull sporting director Jonathan Wheatley deciding to leave for Aston Martin and Sauber/Audi respectively the same year, plus ex-Red Bull strategy chief Will Courtenay also moving to McLaren for 2026. From a narrative perspective, Red Bull’s decision to promote from within in this engineering reshuffle does little to stem the idea that the team that won 21 out of 23 races in 2023 is crumbling. It ended F1’s ground-effect era having been usurped by McLaren at the head of the pecking order, with Verstappen unhappy with its old car’s handling compared to those he had taken to so much success in 2023 and 2023, even as he secured the 2024 title ahead of McLaren’s Lando Norris. At the start of F1’s new car design era in 2026, Red Bull’s chassis woes only seem to have become worse. After crashing in Australian GP qualifying, Verstappen said its RB22 car was “completely undriveable” and that “every lap is like survival” at the Chinese GP, and he was then grappling with similar handling issues at the last race in Japan. Red Bull has produced its own engine for the first time to coincide with the introduction of the new formula in 2026, but this has performed strongly so far, although well adrift of the class-leading Mercedes engine. So often over F1 history, teams have responded to a downturn in results by splashing cash to recruit engineers from rival squads. But it stands out that Red Bull has so far not made a headline signing against the long list of staff that have chosen to leave since 2024 — two years after Red Bull GmbG co-founder Dietrich Mateschitz died and around the power struggle that followed Horner’s behavior scandal, of which he was later cleared. Yet it is in keeping with its policy of taking talent from its junior team over the years, which includes Mekies and a swathe of drivers — including Verstappen. Having two teams allows Red Bull a greater talent pool at all staffing levels than its rivals, as well as political clout when teams vote on rule changes. But perhaps the most significant part of Friday’s news concerns Landi’s move. At the same time as showing Red Bull is supporting Wache after a several seasons where his technical leadership has produced cars with handling issues, Landi’s move over from Racing Bulls comes after many years across the last two F1 car design eras where that team produced designs that its drivers found straightforward to drive. The AlphaTauri/Racing Bulls cars of 2020-2025 may have lacked the overall speed of the designs the senior Red Bull team produced and Verstappen took to so many victories, but adding a touch of driver-friendliness into the design concept may end up being a significant boost to the Dutchman and his new teammate, Isack Hadjar across the rest of the 2026 campaign. But in terms of whether this will be enough for Verstappen to stay beyond this year, it is F1’s overall formula and the controversial racing it has produced in 2026 where the four-time world champion needs the most convincing. Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms Alex Kalinauckas is a Deputy Managing Editor covering Formula 1 for The Athletic. Alex has spent 11 years reporting on motorsport for outlets including Autosport, The New York Times and CNN – including five years as a Formula 1 correspondent travelling to race events. He is a graduate of Goldsmiths, University of London and won the Motorsport UK Young Journalist Award in 2020. Follow Alex on Twitter @Nauckas