Max Verstappen will have a new race engineer at the Austrian Grand Prix, marking the first time he will work without Gianpiero Lambiase during an F1 race weekend.
Lambiase has been Verstappen's race engineer since the Dutchman joined Red Bull shortly after the start of the 2016 campaign.
The duo have formed a formidable partnership in their 196 races together, winning 65 grands prix and four F1 titles together across the last four years.
However, Lambiase is absent from Spielberg for Red Bull's home race due to personal reasons, RacingNews365 can confirm, meaning Verstappen will have a new voice in his ear.
That voice will be Simon Rennie, a long-time Red Bull employee who worked with Daniel Ricciardo for several years.
Following Ricciardo's departure from Red Bull at the end of 2018, Rennie was given a factory-based role - however he will now return to the pit wall in Austria as Verstappen's race engineer.
The role of the race engineer is vital for a driver's execution of a race weekend, as they serve as the individual providing critical information to the driver during every session.
Verstappen is targeting a fifth victory in Austria this weekend as he looks to keep his hopes of a title fight alive.
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