Ralf Schumacher shares remarkable Red Bull rumour

Former F1 driver Ralf Schumacher has suggested another senior figure could soon depart Red Bull.

The team has been hit by a series of high-profile exits in recent years, with figures such as Christian Horner, Adrian Newey, Jonathan Wheatley and Helmut Marko among those to have left the squad.

Max Verstappen’s long-time race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase is also set to join McLaren in 2028, further untwining Red Bull’s championship-winning structure from the early 2020s.

Speaking on the Backstage Boxengasse podcast, Schumacher suggested that chief engineer for car engineering Paul Monaghan could be the next to leave.

“That’s what you hear, anyway,” he said. “I’m not exactly on top of the situation, of course. 

“What struck me most was that he spoke out quite emphatically, not against Max Verstappen.

“But he did offer some counterbalance [to Verstappen's criticisms] by saying: ‘We know Max a bit, and the situation isn’t actually that bad. You do have to put it in the right context'.

“That was the first time an official representative had dared to speak out against it to any extent.”

Monaghan has been part of the Red Bull team for almost as long as it has been on the F1 grid, enjoying huge success with Verstappen and Sebastian Vettel before him.

Red Bull has endured a dip in form this year at the start of the new regulation cycle, and there is fresh doubt over Verstappen's future within the team.

Schumacher has theorised that the situation would be more stable if Marko still had a voice in the garage.

“Above all, it shows who’s missing, and I can’t say it often enough, it's Dr Helmut Marko,” Schumacher said.

“He used to fill that role. He stood firmly behind the team, but also behind the drivers. He set clear boundaries, provided clear information, and provided direction. That ultimately made a big difference.

"I think that’s exactly what’s missing now. On top of that, he handled an enormous amount behind the scenes. 

“He solved problems, found the right people for key positions, and kept all sorts of things running smoothly. You shouldn’t underestimate that. 

“All of that is gone now. On top of that, a new corporate structure has emerged since the passing of Dietrich Mateschitz.”