Ex-F1 driver Jolyon Palmer explains the complex and crucial relationship between driver and race engineer

We heard Max Verstappen and his race engineer Gianpiero ‘GP’ Lambiase exchanging some pretty spiky messages over the radio during the Belgian Grand Prix weekend (see the video clip below). But is that just the normal give and take between driver and race engineer, or does it hint at a strained relationship between the two? In his column this week former F1 driver Jolyon Palmer gives us an insight into the unique bond between a driver and his link to the pit wall…

A driver’s relationship with their race engineer is one of the most critical cogs to extracting performance throughout a Grand Prix weekend. The race engineer is the main point of contact between the team and the driver in all facets of working life. They are also the go between for a lot of other people in the team as well because of their close relationship with the driver.