Max Verstappen seems fed up, but not with Red Bull

Listen to Max Verstappen’s exuberant reaction to taking a shock pole and victory in Suzuka, or pole again in Jeddah, and you still hear a man who likes in competing in Formula 1.

Listen to his recent media interviews and you hear a man who seems to dislike being a Formula 1 driver.

Verstappen has never been a man made for the limelight, but a racer who just cares about competing in the fastest race cars ever built. But being an F1 driver is much more than just that, and ever since the saga around his team Christian Horner kicked off – 13 months ago now – and Red Bull then also started suffering on-track, Verstappen has been the focal point of incessant politicking and rumours around his future, with chatter over renewed interest by Mercedes and big money offers from Aston Martin, which has already snapped up Adrian Newey and Honda.

Red Bull’s disastrous Bahrain weekend, over which the team’s balance issues with its 2025 car as well as its tyre wear deficit to McLaren were highlighted and magnified beyond normal levels, prompted crisis talks over the team’s short-term direction to try and turn its season around. It also triggered further noise around Verstappen’s future, not helped by Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko admitting he was “worried” about the Dutchman’s Red Bull future if the squad couldn’t give him a more competitive car than in Bahrain.

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, Christian Horner, Red Bull Racing

Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool

Marko sounded more upbeat after Jeddah’s much improved form and, while Red Bull hasn’t magically solved all of its problems, more upgrades are on the way for Imola and Barcelona, which the Austrian hopes will get Red Bull back in the hunt on a more consistent basis – and not just on circuits where McLaren can’t flex its muscles.

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But the damage was done, and over the Saudi Arabia weekend whispers were carefully spread over Verstappen considering a sabbatical from F1, understood to originate from people in his environment but crucially not the four-time world champion himself. Are the same forces who were looking to destabilise Horner and Red Bull still lurking in the shadows?

Not yet running away from Red Bull’s issues

Verstappen’s patience seems to be wearing thin with people speaking in his name and the constant barrage of questions that inevitably follow from it. When asked once more about rumours linking him to other teams in Thursday’s FIA press conference, he shot back. “I think just focus on commentating; I’ll focus on driving. Then you don’t need to think about any other scenarios.

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing

Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool

“Honestly, a lot of people are talking about it, except me. Like I said before, I just want to focus on my car, work with the people in the team. That’s the only thing that I’m thinking about in Formula 1 at the moment. I’m very relaxed.”

In his more informal Dutch language session he was pressed further over the noise that accompanies him and Marko’s comments. “People want to have stuff to write. That’s all I can make from that,” he said. “And of course, whatever Helmut says… look, I think every driver wants to be in the fastest car of course, that’s pretty normal. But that doesn’t mean that you should just run away when things don’t go your way for a bit.

“They’re still working on solving our problems and we’re not where we want to be, but that’s all you can do. You can start screaming and shouting, but that’s not going to help either. I’m just trying to do the best I can and it’s perfectly possible that in 2026 we do have it all sorted out. But you can’t always win everything.”

That is not to say that Verstappen is guaranteed to remain at Red Bull either, because there may yet come a point where he will be tempted to trigger an exit clause and try his luck elsewhere, perhaps after really understanding the new world order following the 2026 rules reset, but he doesn’t seem to be anywhere near that point yet.

“It’s just the world we live in”

Any questions over team switches or sabbaticals should also been seen in the context of Verstappen seemingly being a bit disillusioned with the FIA’s latest clampdown on driver swearing and the cesspool of social media. He has always been open about his intention not to go on much longer beyond his current 2028 deal, but might he walk away from the series altogether even earlier?

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing

Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images

Not for the first time since his last year’s ‘Swear-gate’ in Singapore, Verstappen gave the FIA post-race press conference short shrift, especially regarding questions over his five-second time penalty. “The problem is that I cannot share my opinion about it because I might get penalised also, so it’s better not to speak about it. Anything I say or try to say about it might get me in trouble,” he said.

When quizzed further by Motorsport.com, he added: “It’s just the world we live in. You can’t share your opinion because it’s not appreciated apparently, or people can’t handle the full truth. Honestly, it’s better if I don’t say too much. It also saves my time because we already have to do so much.

“It’s honestly just how everything is becoming. Everyone is super sensitive about everything. And [with] what we have currently, we cannot be critical anyway. So less talking – even better for me.”

Max Verstappen still loves driving Formula 1 cars. He doesn’t seem to love being a Formula 1 driver.