“You think I’m stupid?”: Max Verstappen in a heated discussion with Red Bull engineer Gianpiero Lambiase

Earlier on Friday, Max Verstappen got into a heated exchange with his race engineer, Gianpiero Lambiase, during the second practice session of this weekend's Monaco Grand Prix.

At one point during the period, the Dutchman found himself going straight down one of the turns of the streets of Monte Carlo, causing the need for him to reverse his vehicle. But for some reason, his vehicle wouldn't respond, causing Verstappen to complain to Lambiase, prompting the race engineer to instruct the driver on the basics of putting the car in reverse, which the world champion didn't take well.

During the FP2 session, the Red Bull Racing driver found himself going straight down turn five after a small lock-up. This led to the driver being unable to engage his reverse gear and reaching out to his race engineer for more information, leading to a heated discussion between the two after Lambiase pointed out the obvious solution.

Max: "The car is not going in reverse"

GP: "if you pull the clutch and ..... and then reverse"

Max: "you think I am stupid? I tried that"

At the end of the second practice session, Verstappen's results put him in P10, 0.713 seconds away from session leader and Monegasque, Charles Leclerc, who also topped the first practice period of the day. The same session saw Verstappen finish in second.

Oscar Piastri, Lewis Hamilton, Lando Norris, Liam Lawson, Isack Hadjar, Fernando Alonso, Alexander Albon, and Kimi Antonelli made up the rest of the Top 10 of FP2.

Meanwhile, Red Bull's other driver, Yuki Tsunoda, ended up in P14 after the first practice session of the day, but managed to make it 0.004s behind his teammate in the second period, putting him in 11th.

With today's sessions now completed, drivers will be preparing for the third practice session as well as qualifying, which will take place tomorrow, Saturday, May 24.

Max Verstappen calls Monaco Qualifying session 'Insane'

Max Verstappen on track during practice ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Monaco at Circuit de Monaco on May 23, 2025 - Source: Getty

Ahead of tomorrow's qualifying session, which will determine the starting grid for the race on Sunday, Max Verstappen has spoken out about the importance of performing well during the period. Given the narrowness of the Monte Carlo track, it makes overtaking difficult during the race, so where a driver starts from can determine where he ends up when the checkered flag is waved at the end of the event.

Verstappen admits that he is aware of this and revealed the craziness of Saturday's session.

"I think it’s just how difficult the track is to master in Qualifying," he said. "Knowing that overtaking is difficult on Sunday, you know Qualifying is more important. It’s challenging, bumpy, there’s the history… it’s one you want to win. It’s pretty insane, to be honest." [via F1]

Going into this weekend's Grand Prix, Max Verstappen currently sits in third place in the drivers' standings, 22 points away from championship leader Oscar Piastri.