- Verstappen loses trusted ally as mechanic Ole Schack resigns from Red Bull.
- Competing factions inside garage left Schack unheard after Mekies took charge.
- Jon Caller’s exit would strip Verstappen’s crew down to one familiar face.
Ole Schack, one of Formula 1’s longest-serving pit crew members, has resigned from Red Bull Racing. The Danish mechanic spent more than two decades with the team. His departure deepens a loss of staff that has stripped away much of the support structure around Max Verstappen.
Schack joined the team during its Jaguar years and stood in the pit lane for every single Red Bull race since the Australian Grand Prix in 2005. He did not miss one.
The Japanese Grand Prix was his last. For the first time in the team’s history, he will not be in Miami.
Twenty-one years is a long time in any profession. In Formula 1, it is almost unheard of for a pit crew member.
Over time, he became part of Verstappen’s inner circle in the garage. Sources indicate he was a genuine confidant, someone the Dutchman trusted beyond the purely technical.
Why is he leaving?
The departure traces back to the turbulence that followed Christian Horner’s removal as team principal midway through 2025. Laurent Mekies, who left Racing Bulls to take the role, brought a different approach with him. The atmosphere, by most accounts, improved.
But improvement is not the same as unity.
According to GPblog, competing factions within the team are pulling in different directions. Each group believes it holds the answer to Red Bull’s struggles. The disagreements have left some people feeling unheard. For Schack, that feeling became unsustainable.
Negotiations over his notice period are still ongoing. He is said to want a shorter exit window. Reports suggest he intends to stay in Formula 1 and is looking for a new role in the paddock.
A broader wave of departures
Schack is not the first to go. He is part of a longer chain of personnel heading for the exit.
Since late 2025, Red Bull has lost senior adviser Helmut Marko, technical figure Craig Skinner and mechanic Matt Caller, who had worked directly with Max Verstappen.
Control engineer Michael Manning, engine engineer David Mart and performance engineer Tom Hart have also left Verstappen’s side of the garage, according to GPblog.
That leaves Gianpiero Lambiase as the last significant figure from the team’s dominant era still standing alongside the Dutchman. Lambiase has attracted interest from other teams before. He has stayed. For now.
PlanetF1 reports that Jon Caller, who took on the chief mechanic role after his twin brother Matt moved to Audi, may also have submitted his resignation. That has not yet been confirmed.
Verstappen’s teammate, Isack Hadjar, addressed the mood in the garage after Japan. Speaking to the media, including Motorsport Week, the young Frenchman did not dress it up.
“It’s not good. But everyone’s got their heads down to understand what’s going on. Hopefully, the next version of the car really makes an effect,” he said.
The fact that a rookie felt the need to speak to team morale publicly says something about how visible the fractures have become.
A struggling car compounds the misery
The upheaval off the track goes alongside a painful season on it.
Red Bull sits sixth in the constructors’ standings after three rounds. Verstappen has scored just 12 points and sits ninth in the drivers’ championship.
The RB22, built around the new 2026 technical regulations and powered by a new Ford engine, has not matched the pace of Mercedes, McLaren or Ferrari.
A DNF and two finishes outside the top five tell the story of the Dutchman’s year so far.
The spring break in April gives Red Bull a moment to breathe before Miami. Whether the team uses it to bounce back, both in results and personnel, is the question hanging over the paddock.
Verstappen has made little secret of his frustration. With the regulations working against him and the people around him thinning out, the possibility of him leaving Red Bull, or even Formula 1, after this season grows harder to dismiss.
For now, one more familiar face is preparing to walk out the door.
