Red Bull confirms Lagrue as Red Bull Junior Program director from 2027

Red Bull has confirmed Gwen Lagrue will join the team from Mercedes in 2027, taking on the role of director of the Red Bull Junior Program.

Lagrue has been a central part to Mercedes’ own young driver program over the past decade, helping identify and develop the likes of George Russell and Kimi Antonelli. As reported last week, Lagrue will take on a similar role at Red Bull reporting to team principal Laurent Mekies (picture together), with Red Bull now officially confirming his arrival.

“Joining Oracle Red Bull Racing marks the beginning of an exciting new chapter for me,” Lagrue said. “After 11 memorable years at Mercedes, I felt this was the right moment to take on a new challenge and continue growing personally and professionally.

“The Red Bull Junior Program is one of the most respected and successful driver development programs in motorsport. It has produced some of the greatest talents F1 has ever seen, and it is a real honor to have the opportunity to lead such a talented group of people and help shape its next chapter. I'm looking forward to working closely with Laurent as well as the entire team and I am very thankful for this opportunity.

“Together, we have a fantastic framework to build on the program's remarkable legacy, continue to evolve it for the future, and identify, develop and prepare the next generation of F1 race winners and world champions, following a pattern Oracle Red Bull Racing has successfully repeated over the past 20 years.”

Mekies says Lagrue’s arrival showcases the investment Red Bull wants to continue to make in young drivers, while also strengthening a senior leadership position following the departure of many high-profile names in recent years.

“Gwen is one of the very best talent developers in F1 and I know first-hand the expertise, leadership and passion he brings to developing young drivers,” Mekies said.

“The Red Bull Junior Program has always been a cornerstone of Red Bull's success, and having Gwen lead it soon reflects the importance we continue to place on developing the next generation of F1 talent.

“We want to recognize another time today the extraordinary contribution Helmut Marko has made over more than two decades creating and leading the junior program. The junior program has become the benchmark in F1 because of his vision, commitment and ability to identify and develop exceptional talents and he deserves enormous credit for that.

“As we continue to build the next chapter of Oracle Red Bull Racing, attracting leaders of Gwen's calibre is fundamental to achieving our ambitions. We're strengthening our high-performance organization with outstanding people in every part of the business, and Gwen is an important addition of that journey. Together, we will build on an incredibly strong foundation while continuing to evolve the program for the future.”