The F1 market never sleeps The news of Gianpiero Lambiase’s farewell to Red Bull for a sensational move to rivals McLaren has at least reminded us how the Formula 1 market never goes on holiday, even – and perhaps above all – at a time of the year when there are no grand prix scheduled. Thus, while the farewell of the trusted track engineer suggests that Max Verstappen may reconsider the Woking team as his possible future destination, at the same time discussions on the future of Charles Leclerc in Ferrari are back in vogue. Speaking about it is Ralf Schumacher, former F1 driver now technical commentator for Sky Germany, who wanted to warn the Monegasque against the idea of leaving Maranello to join Red Bull, should Verstappen’s place become available. Ralf Schumacher advises Charles Leclerc “Well, I think we have to be honest here and say – explains Schumacher – that at the moment Red Bull is not at all an obvious choice for a Formula 1 driver. At the moment there is a project which however is long-term, the team is in a bit of trouble, there is chaos here and there and not good communication with the rest of the world. I don’t know if it would make sense for someone like Charles Leclerc to decide to leave a team like Ferrari, which has just started working properly. It wouldn’t be a very smart move. Of course, Ferrari must continue to develop new young drivers, but in any case they should at least keep one, and his name is Charles Leclerc.” To be fair, it must be said that, at least this season, the rumors that saw Leclerc away from Ferrari in the event that he did not have a car available to win by the 2026 World Championship, have died down for the moment. And if on the one hand it is clear that the SF-26 is not yet a title-winning car, it is equally clear that for now the alternatives that were most talked about in the past – Aston Martin and Red Bull, in fact – are not up to the standard of the Red. For Charles Leclerc, the idea of staying (never questioned, at least in his public outings which have always been of great love for the Cavallino) could therefore be the best given the current balance of power in Formula 1.




















