Red Bull and Max Verstappen are already dealing with the absence of ousted team principal Christian Horner at Spa-Francorchamps and now the Dutchman is missing another familiar face

Max Verstappen has a new Red Bull Racing boss in Laurent Mekies(Image: Getty Images)

Max Verstappen will have to make do without trusted race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase at this weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix. It is the second race in three that the Red Bull head of race engineering has missed, having also been absent from last month’s Austrian Grand Prix.

Lambiase has served as race engineer to Verstappen throughout the Dutchman’s entire career with Red Bull Racing. Despite their often heated radio exchanges, they have formed a tight bond and the four-time Formula 1 champion considers him one of his very closest allies in the paddock.

A specific explanation for Lambiase’s absence has not been given, beyond the team confirming he has not travelled for ‘personal reasons’. Working in his place this weekend is Simon Rennie, who also filled in at the Austria race.

Rennie has spent most of his time in recent years in a role back at the team’s base in Milton Keynes. But he also has plenty of trackside experience as a race engineer in F1, having previously performed that role for former Verstappen team-mates Daniel Ricciardo and Alex Albon.

They did not get much of a chance to test how they work together in Austria, given Verstappen was taken out on the first lap in Austrian by Kimi Antonelli. But the Dutchman was encouraged by how they had collaborated in practice and in qualifying before that.

Verstappen said of working with Rennie at the Red Bull Ring: “I’ve known Simon for a long time on the other side of the garage and I’m working with him also in the simulator and he has a lot of experience anyway. He was straight on it and it was nice.”

Of course, Lambiase’s is not the only familiar face and voice that is missing from the Red Bull garage at Spa-Francorchamps. For the first time in the team’s entire F1 history, since it debuted on the grid in 2005, Christian Horner is not leading their charge trackside having been axed as team principal last week.

Making his debut in the role is Horner’s replacement, Laurent Mekies, who was promoted from the same role at junior squad Racing Bulls. The Frenchman spent much of his time in Milton Keynes anyway and so is already a familiar face to Red Bull Racing staff.

That is certainly the case for Verstappen’s team-mate Yuki Tsunoda, who drove under Mekies at Racing Bulls until he was promoted to the top team earlier this year. “It will be good to link up again with Laurent,” said the Japanese racer.

“We worked really well together at Racing Bulls. I know how he likes to work and our full focus is on pushing forward and for me personally to start delivering the performance we need.”