The partnership between Ford and Red Bull Racing in Formula 1 will remain strong despite recent internal changes within the team and doubts about Max Verstappen’s future in the category. Ford Performance director Mark Rushbrook stated that the automaker’s commitment to F1 does not depend on a single person.
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This statement comes at a time of intense activity behind the scenes at Red Bull. In addition to the difficulties faced by the team at the start of the 2026 season, especially regarding the chassis and aerodynamics, it was confirmed that Gianpiero Lambiase will leave the team to join McLaren in 2028.
Lambiase, Verstappen’s race engineer and also Red Bull’s head of competitions, is another key name to leave the Milton Keynes structure. In recent years, the team has also had to deal with the departures of Rob Marshall, Jonathan Wheatley, Adrian Newey, Will Courtenay, Christian Horner, and Helmut Marko.
Even so, Rushbrook said he fully trusts Red Bull’s ability to respond: “I think Red Bull has shown its character and what the team is capable of many times throughout history,” he said in an interview with Motorsport.com. The executive cited last season as an example: “Everyone wrote them off from the championship fight, but we saw how close they got at the end and what they managed to achieve.”
The executive acknowledged that the performance seen so far in 2026 is not yet ideal, but assured that this has not shaken Ford’s confidence: “Many people are saying that Red Bull is behind. That’s what we’ve seen on track so far, but that doesn’t discourage us. On the contrary, it motivates us even more, because Red Bull and Ford want to be fighting at the front,” he said.
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Regarding the constant personnel changes, Rushbrook said that how the team reacts is more important than the losses themselves: “They have the right people and the right culture. Personnel changes generate a lot of media coverage, but that’s part of the sport,” he said. According to him, there is natural concern when someone important leaves the team, but the internal response is what really defines the strength of an organization.
The executive also revealed that Red Bull kept Ford informed about Lambiase’s departure before the official announcement. When asked if he received guarantees from the team about how it will handle this new change, he replied: “Yes, definitely.”
Rushbrook also commented on the possibility of Verstappen leaving Formula 1 or switching teams in the future: “No one wants to see Max leave, because he is part of the personality of the category,” he added.
Despite this, he reinforced that Ford’s stay does not depend on the four-time world champion: “We entered Formula 1 to be in Formula 1. We chose Red Bull Racing for what it is as a team and culture, not for a single individual. We love Max and would like him to continue, but that would not change our commitment to the sport,” concluded the Ford executive.
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