Who is Tom Hart, the engineer stepping in for Max Verstappen?

Tom Hart will take over as Max Verstappen’s race engineer for three of the final six grands prix, stepping in while Gianpiero Lambiase reduces his pit-wall workload ahead of a move to McLaren. Hart is already a familiar presence in the four-time champion’s garage, having worked alongside Lambiase and Verstappen for several seasons.

The change puts Hart on the radio for Austin, São Paulo and Las Vegas. Lambiase is due to remain in his usual position for the rounds in Mexico City, Qatar and Abu Dhabi, while still attending the other events in his wider role as head of racing. His planned move to McLaren as chief racing officer is covered in our report on Lambiase’s departure from Red Bull.

Hart has built his experience inside Red Bull

Hart’s career with Red Bull began in July 2012, when he joined as an intern in the race engineering department. From late 2014 to the end of 2019, he worked at the factory as a simulator performance engineer.

He moved to trackside work in January 2020, joining Verstappen’s side of the garage as a performance engineer. The role put him in close contact with Lambiase, working on car set-up and data. This season, Red Bull expanded his responsibilities to senior performance engineer across both cars.

Hart has also taken charge of free practice sessions and gained race-engineering experience during test sessions and filming days. During the upcoming substitutions, Lambiase will remain with the team, although not in his regular race-engineering position.

A permanent promotion is not yet confirmed

Hart’s route to the temporary role might have taken a different turn. Earlier in 2026, he came close to joining Williams as Alex Albon’s race engineer, but that move did not happen. Red Bull already had a succession plan for Lambiase, and Hart fitted it.

It remains unconfirmed whether Hart will become Verstappen’s full-time race engineer from the start of the 2027 season. The timing is understood to depend partly on when Lambiase’s McLaren contract begins, with negotiations reportedly still under way. The longer-term picture around Verstappen’s future at Red Bull has also been the subject of separate coverage, but Hart’s appointment remains unresolved.