MCLAREN BOSS ADDRESSES FERRARI DEFECTION RUMOURS

 

McLaren Team Principal has been linked with a move to Ferrari

McLaren Formula 1 Team Principal Andrea Stella has responded to increasing speculation linking him with a sensational switch to Ferrari.

Stella is seen by many as the architect of McLaren’s success in recent years, rising through the ranks of the team since joining in 2015 from Ferrari as Head of Race Operations.

Promoted to Performance Director in 2018, and then Racing Director in 2019, he assumed the role of Team Principal in 2023, spearheading McLaren’s double constructors’ titles in 2024 and 2025.

But the Italian has been linked to Ferrari, given the sensational news that GianPiero Lambiase will join McLaren as Chief Racing Officer in 2028.

But Stella has firmly rejected these rumours, jokingly confirming the speculations “made me smile.”

“Honestly, some of the recent rumours, including those regarding astronomical salaries and mythical pre-contracts, have made me smile,” said Stella. 

Andrea Stella rumours showing ‘silly season’ now covers Team Principals?.

“Silly season”, covering driver moves, now seems to cover off Team Principals, the paddock seemingly connecting the dots of moves in the Team Principal market.

Jonathan Wheatley has departed Audi, heavily linked to Aston Martin, replacing Adrian Newey, while Stella’s supposed departure could lead to Fred Vasseur leaving Ferrari.

Stella had a somewhat unusual analogy to describe the whispers going in the paddock.

“It almost seems as though the ‘silly season’, which usually begins before summer, has arrived early!” he said.

” I’m quite used to this sort of thing by now and I take with a smile. 

“It almost looks like that some envious pastry chef has tried to spoil the preparation of a good dessert at the McLaren patisserie. 

“However, we do know very well how to distinguish the good ingredients from the poisoned biscuits….”

Stella’s firm denial is to be expected, but speculation will continue to grow until McLaren announces a firm contract renewal. Ferrari is also conspicuous in its silence.

- James Phillips

FORMER RED BULL MECHANIC SAYS HANNA SCHMITZ COULD BE NEXT TO LEAVE AFTER GIANPIERO LAMBIASE

Photo by Gongora/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Ex-Red Bull mechanic Kenny Handkammer has claimed that Hannah Schmitz could be the next senior figure to leave the team.

In recent times, Red Bull have been hit with several high-profile exits, including the likes of Christian Horner, Adrian Newey, Jonathan Wheatley, Rob Marshall and Will Courtenay.

Last week, another senior departure was confirmed as Gianpiero Lambiase is set to leave Red Bull for McLaren in 2028.

Lambiase is set to become Chief Racing Officer at McLaren and will report to team principal Andrea Stella.

Less than a week after Lambiase’s departure was confirmed, it has been claimed that another senior figure could leave.

Hannah Schmitz could be next to leave Red Bull after Gianpiero Lambiase

Speaking on The Two Mechanics podcast, Handkammer claimed that the current Head of Strategy, Schmitz, could be next in line to leave the Milton Keynes-based outfit.

Handkammer said: “The decline of Red Bull is quite sad. If I were the CEO of Red Bull global, I’d be thinking. Look who he has lost, Christian Horner, Adrian Newey, Jonathan Wheatley, Gianpiero Lambiase and Will Courtenay.

“It looks like Hannah Schmitz, Head of Strategy, is rumoured to go too, all these massive key people and talks are there’s going to be more. That’s a real head scratcher. How do you reconfigure the team?”

Who is Hannah Schmitz and what is her role at Red Bull?

Schmitz, 40, is regarded as one of the most talented figures in the Formula 1 paddock, having joined Red Bull back in 2009 as a Modelling and Strategy Engineer.

In 2011, Schmitz became Senior Strategy Engineer before being promoted to Principal Strategy Engineer in 2021. In 2026, she became Red Bull’s Head of Race Strategy following Courtenay’s move to McLaren.

Schmitz has previously been praised for playing a major role in a number of Red Bull victories.

Following the 2022 Hungarian Grand Prix, Max Verstappen labelled Schmitz as ‘insanely calm’ after the Dutchman won the race from P10.

He said: “You can’t afford many mistakes. It’s of course very hard to always be on the good side, let’s say it like that. But I think we have a lot of good guys and girls in the team.

“Today, I think Hannah, our strategist, was insanely calm. Yeah, she’s very good.”

With several big names already out the door, Red Bull will have to keep the likes of Schmitz in the team if they want to prevent Verstappen from engineering his own exit.

SPECULATION MOUNTS OVER ADRIAN NEWEY'S ASTON MARTIN ROLE

F1 team has reportedly approached Audi's Jonathan Wheatley about taking over as team principal.

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• Newey likely to scale back role soon but replacement not confirmed

• Audi’s Wheatley is currently the most likely hire, according to ESPN

• Newey will switch focus to technical matters amid difficult start to season for Aston Martin

Aston Martin team principal Adrian Newey remains at the helm of the Formula One team but speculation is mounting around the future of his role.

Autosport reported on Thursday that the 67-year-old was set to scale back his role, with current Audi boss Jonathan Wheatley named as his replacement.

However, a team spokesperson described the reports to BlackBook Motorsport as “rumour and speculation”.

The spokesperson added: “Aston Martin Aramco F1 Team remains fully committed to Adrian Newey as managing technical partner and team principal.”

Since then, ESPN has reported that Newey will step down from his role to focus on technical matters within the team. The report added that no deal has been agreed yet, but Wheatley is currently the most likely hire.

BBC Sport has also reported that Aston Martin has approached Wheatley about the role.

An Aston Martin spokesperson told ESPN and BBC Sport that the organisation “would not be engaging in media speculation about its senior leadership” and that Newey “continues to lead the team as team principal and managing technical partner”.

Newey officially joined the team, which is owned by Canadian billionaire Lawrence Stroll, on 1st March 2025 as managing technical partner before the surprise announcement that he would become team principal for the start of the 2026 season.

Known for being quiet and reserved, many felt the demands of team leadership were not suited to Newey’s technical prowess. Various reports indicate that Newey is assisting the search for his successor.

Newey and Wheatley know each other well from their time together at Red Bull Racing. The duo formed part of a hugely successful outfit that won six constructors’ championships between 2010 and 2023.

Wheatley has been team principal of Audi since the start of the 2025 season – when they raced under the Sauber name – and oversaw a dramatic shift from clear backmarkers the year prior to his arrival to a more competitive midfield team.

Aston Martin have suffered a terrible start to the 2026 season due to severe deficiencies with their Honda engine and will hope to benefit from Wheatley’s powers of recovery should he be appointed. However, prising him out of his current deal will be far from easy and could include a period of gardening leave.

If a deal is ultimately agreed, Newey may have to continue as team principal for some time as Audi would not want to bolster a direct rival at the start of a new phase of regulations.

According to ESPN, the plan was always for Newey’s role as team boss to be temporary, while the publication has also reported that any new hire would report to him in the new structure.

Other candidates approached for the role reportedly include Max Verstappen’s race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase and former McLaren team principal Andreas Seidl.

If Newey is ultimately replaced this season, his successor will be Aston Martin’s fifth team principal in the past six seasons.

- CIAN BRITTLE

JOS VERSTAPPEN WARNS RED BULL: 'TOO MANY' ENGINEERS LEAVING

 

Jos Verstappen is concerned by the number of exits that are taking place at Red Bull. Clive Mason/Getty Images

Max Verstappen's father, Jos, believes "too many" big name engineers are leaving Red Bull and said he warned the team it would happen earlier this year.

Jos Verstappen raised concerns about the management of Red Bull during the opening round of the 2024 season in Bahrain after team principal Christian Horner was accused of controlling behaviour by a female employee.

"It can't go on the way it is. It will explode", he told the Daily Mail. "There is tension here while he remains in position."

Horner was cleared of wrongdoing following an internal investigation launched by the Red Bull parent company and retained his position at the team.

However, in the months that followed, several key members of the Red Bull team have announced their upcoming departure from the team as results on track have dipped.

In May, it was confirmed that chief technical officer Adrian Newey would leave in early 2025 and it has since been announced he will join rivals Aston Martin.

Sporting director Jonathan Wheatley is set to leave Red Bull to become team principal of Audi's new F1 project next year, while head of strategy, Will Courtenay, is set to leave for McLaren when his contract expires.

"Yes, this is what I warned about", Jos Verstappen told Motorsport.com at a rally in Belgium last weekend.

"The team then says: 'Oh, it doesn't matter, we have someone else [who we can put on that position].'

"But it's too many people now [leaving].

"And Max gets questions about it every time and so on. So yeah, I think it's just not good, what's happening at the moment."

Max Verstappen's own future at the team was in question this year until Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff met with the his management over the summer break and broke off talks.

The three-time world champion is set to stay at Red Bull for 2025 and has a contract until the end of 2028, but has still been linked to a move away from the team for 2026.

- Laurence Edmondson, F1 Editor