Johnny Herbert believes Red Bull’s recruitment of Gwen Lagrue from Mercedes could serve two purposes: rebuilding the team’s junior driver programme after Helmut Marko’s departure and preparing for the possibility that Max Verstappen eventually leaves Milton Keynes. The former Formula 1 driver believes Lagrue’s experience developing young talent could become particularly important if Red Bull needs to find or build its next leading driver.
Lagrue played a major role in guiding Andrea Kimi Antonelli’s progression from karting towards Formula 1 at Mercedes. His move represents an important arrival for Red Bull after a period dominated by high-profile departures, although he will not be joining the technical organisation headed by Pierre Waché.
Johnny Herbert links Gwen Lagrue move to Max Verstappen’s future
Red Bull has finally strengthened its organisation with a significant recruitment after losing several prominent figures in recent years. Gwen Lagrue is leaving Mercedes after building a strong reputation for identifying and developing young drivers.
His arrival also fills part of the void left by Helmut Marko, who for years played a central role in Red Bull’s junior programme and helped identify the drivers capable of progressing through the organisation towards Formula 1.
Johnny Herbert believes that expertise could prove particularly valuable if Red Bull eventually has to plan for a future without Max Verstappen. The four-time world champion remains the team’s most important competitive asset, while speculation surrounding his longer-term plans has continued throughout the 2026 season.
Interest in Verstappen’s future has also been fuelled by persistent links with Mercedes, including renewed discussion after Max Verstappen and Toto Wolff were pictured together during the summer break.
Herbert: Red Bull must show Verstappen it is rebuilding
Speaking to Casinostugan, Johnny Herbert argued that Red Bull must demonstrate to Max Verstappen that it is actively strengthening every part of the organisation rather than simply waiting for its problems to resolve themselves.
“Knowing Gwen Lagrue, I know he has a very good understanding of what it takes to get the best out of drivers,” Johnny Herbert said.
“A team is always aware, when it has one of the best drivers we have ever seen, that it has to show Max Verstappen that it is doing everything possible to put the right ingredients in place that will help rebuild the team. It has to show that it is not simply sitting on its hands waiting for things to happen.”
That rebuilding process has become particularly important during a difficult first season under Formula 1’s new regulations. Red Bull has struggled to provide Max Verstappen with a consistently competitive RB22, increasing scrutiny over whether the team can return to regular victory contention.
Isack Hadjar could benefit from Gwen Lagrue’s experience
Johnny Herbert believes Red Bull must also think beyond Max Verstappen regardless of whether the Dutchman is actually planning to leave. In his view, a successful organisation needs to keep developing its other drivers and prepare alternatives before they become necessary.
“Even if Max had already ‘gone’, had already completed an agreement and was about to leave, you would still have to focus, for example, on Isack Hadjar and give him the right feeling within the team so that you can get the best out of him,” Johnny Herbert added.
Isack Hadjar’s development is therefore particularly relevant to Red Bull’s long-term planning. The Frenchman’s progress alongside Max Verstappen has already become one of the key areas to assess during the summer break, with his first half of the season providing important clues about his Red Bull potential.
Lagrue’s previous work with young drivers could help Red Bull create the environment required to accelerate that development, whether Hadjar ultimately becomes a long-term team leader or another prospect emerges from the junior programme.
Red Bull appointment can be interpreted in two ways
For Johnny Herbert, the significance of Gwen Lagrue’s recruitment should therefore not be reduced to a single theory about Max Verstappen’s future.
“The appointment of Gwen Lagrue could be interpreted in two ways,” Herbert said. “But a team is always aware that a driver could potentially leave in search of better opportunities.”
One interpretation is straightforward: Red Bull needed an experienced figure to rebuild and guide its driver development structure after Helmut Marko. Lagrue’s experience at Mercedes makes him a natural fit for that responsibility.
The second is the scenario highlighted by Johnny Herbert. Red Bull cannot assume that Max Verstappen will remain indefinitely, and strengthening its ability to identify, develop and support elite young drivers provides insurance against the possibility of eventually losing him.
For now, there is no confirmation that Max Verstappen has decided to leave Red Bull. Herbert’s comments are an interpretation of the strategic value behind Lagrue’s appointment rather than evidence of an impending transfer. What is clear is that Red Bull is strengthening one of the areas that helped produce Max Verstappen in the first place: its ability to find and develop the next generation of Formula 1 talent.
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