Red Bull team principal Christian Horner has revealed that Max Verstappen and race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase have “done a bit of counselling” during the recent summer break, following some frosty conversations.
Verstappen and Lambiase have worked together since the Dutchman joined Red Bull at the 2016 Spanish Grand Prix, a race he famously one.
They have a “great partnership” which has certainly been tested over recent years; however, it’s only recently that some heated conversations have been heard.
Verstappen recently hit out at the team and Lambiase at the end of Q2 at the Belgian Grand Prix, prior to the summer break.
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The reigning World Champion was furious after nearly being eliminated in Q2, with him slamming the team’s “s*** execution”.
“I don’t give a f* if I’m through in P10. It was s* execution,” Verstappen said at the end of Q2 at Spa-Francorchamps.
“OK, and then when the track was two seconds quicker for your final lap and you didn’t have any energy left, how would that have gone down?” Lambiase sharply replied.
The pair were at it again during the race at Spa, which Verstappen won by 22 seconds despite having started sixth.
Nevertheless, Horner joked that they were “like an old married couple”.
“They are like an old married couple,” Horner said.
“You hear them b* at each other and having a go. They’ve done a bit of counselling over the summer break. They’re back together, they look happy, and it’s a great partnership.
“Those two guys, they know each other intimately and the race engineer has a unique relationship with the driver, and GP and Max’s is one of the best I have ever seen”.
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They were at it again on Saturday at the Dutch GP, as Lambiase told Verstappen to concentrate after he asked the team to get the Soft tyres ready, due to the track rapidly drying.
Verstappen ended up claimed pole position once again by six-tenths of a second.
He comfortably won the grand prix, despite the weather making his life more difficult than usual.