“I Wouldn’t Want to Repeat 2021”: Max Verstappen’s Engineer Gets Honest About Controversial Championship

Max Verstappen won his first world championship in the most controversial of circumstances. While the call by the then race director Michael Masi was later declared a “human error”, Verstappen remained the crowned champion for the 2021 season. Lewis Hamilton, who was on the receiving end of it all, has on many occasions described how horrible it had all been. One would think that Red Bull camp might recall the year fondly, but Max Verstappen’s engineer may disagree.

Verstappen’s engineer Gianpiero Lambiase is a household name in himself. His banter with Verstappen has often been termed as a husband-wife-like situation by Christian Horner himself. However, this time around, the man has rather serious ‘submissions’ to make. He states he wouldn’t want a repeat of the 2021 camping because of how stressful it was.

According to BBC, Lambiase said, “I wouldn’t want to repeat 2021 in a hurry. It was incredibly competitive on and off the track [but] sometimes I think it went beyond the realms of sport. In terms of taking that pressure away from Max, I tried to stress with everybody here that we continued as normal. We treated every race as a single event rather than trying to look too far down the line at what could be.”

While it is always fun to look at the eventful past, one can’t help but wonder what is in the store for the future. Case in point: Who will replace Sergio Perez if at all?

Can Fernando Alonso become Max Verstappen’s teammate?

That coveted Red Bull seat next to Max Verstappen is up for grabs. And with 13 drivers out of contract this season, there is a very big pool to choose from. Ralph Schumacher suggests Fernando Alonso is a front-runner for Milton Keynes. He said, “Christian Horner has always been a very, very big fan of Fernando Alonso,” Schumacher told Sky Germany. “There seems to be big intentions in the background to bring Fernando Alonso into the cockpit next year.”

He further added, “There are these rumors, and these rumors and information are pretty good. If Fernando Alonso were to get Red Bull at the end of his career – the car with which he can win – Fernando Alonso obviously wants that. And you saw what he did this weekend, how fast he was, how he changed gears, how he stopped [George] Russell from overtaking him. He knows what he wants and I think he’d be a good fit.”

READ MORE: F1 Pundit Fires 11-Word Message to FIA as He Exposes Fernando Alonso’s Brutal Penalty

Who do you think will become Max Verstappen’s teammate next year?