Max Verstappen heads into Red Bull's home race with upgrades and growing uncertainty
The defending Formula 1 champion has an upgraded car for his team's home race in Austria — where he's won five times — on the back of an encouraging second place in Canada, where his two McLaren rivals collided.
Zoom out, though, and the situation is much more uncertain.
Verstappen remains at risk of a one-race ban for too many penalty points, Red Bull teammate Yuki Tsunoda is usually too far adrift to help him, and Verstappen's own future is far from clear.
'I don't think we need to talk about that,' Verstappen said Thursday when asked to confirm whether he'll stay with the team for 2026. 'It's not really in my mind. It's just driving and trying to push the performance, you know. And then we focus on next year.'
What are Verstappen's options?
Verstappen has a long-term contract through 2028, so in theory his Red Bull seat should be one of the safest on the grid. However, the deal has performance-related clauses which could reportedly allow a move.
In that case, the most obvious option could be Mercedes, which has yet to confirm either driver for 2026. That would mean Verstappen teaming up with an old foe in Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff, who'd also have to choose to drop either George Russell and Kimi Antonelli.
Dramatic changes to how F1 cars look and perform are coming in 2026, and Red Bull has to adapt more than most.
For the first time in nearly two decades, it heads into a new era of F1 rules without design guru Adrian Newey, who left last year and is now at Aston Martin.
The other leading teams are sticking with their current engine arrangements, but not Red Bull. The team has an in-house engine developer, Red Bull Powertrains, but it's switching partners for 2026 from Honda to newcomer Ford.
The second seat
No team in F1 depends as much on one driver as Red Bull does on Verstappen. He's scored 155 of the team's 162 points this season.
His teammates — first Liam Lawson, then Yuki Tsunoda — have struggled all season. That's helped to restore the reputation of Sergio Perez, who was dropped by Red Bull after scoring barely one-third of Verstappen's points last season.
'I know, deep down, they really regret it,' Perez said on a podcast this week. 'And I know that from a very reliable source. It's tough. I have very good friends there, and people might think I take pleasure in what happened, but no.'
Red Bull's car seems to favor Verstappen's driving style over anyone else's, but the Dutch driver says he can't diagnose the issue because he's been with the team since 2016 and has nothing else to compare it with.
'The thing is that I don't know any better, right?' he said Thursday. 'I mean, I've basically started with Red bull, so I only know one car and that's how I drive. I adapt to it. Is it the best? Is it the fastest? Is it not? I don't know.'
___
AP Sports Writer Tales Azzoni in Madrid contributed to this report.
___
AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
19 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Verstappen accuses race organisers of being overcautious with rain delay
Max Verstappen accused race organisers of being overcautious on Sunday when they decided to delay the start of the Belgian Grand Prix by 80 minutes following heavy rain. The four-time world champion said he believed that instead of suspending the race after one formation lap behind the Safety Car, Race Control should have kept the field out on the track to clear standing water. "It wasn't even raining," he said, referring to the decision taken at the scheduled race start time of 1500 local time (1300 GMT). "Of course, between Turns One and Five, there was quite a bit of water. "But if you do two or three laps behind the Safety Car, then it would have been a lot more clear -- and the rest of the track was ready to go anyway. "It's a bit of a shame. I knew that they would be a bit more cautious because of Silverstone, but this also didn't make sense. "Then, it's better to say 'let's wait until it's completely dry' and we'll start on slicks because this is not really wet weather racing for me." Instead of staying out, however, the field were taken back into the pit lane to wait for more than an hour, waiting until improved weather conditions prevailed. The race then began with a rolling start after four laps behind the Safety Car. Verstappen finished off the podium for the third consecutive race as series leader Oscar Piastri led team-mate Lando Norris home in a convincing McLaren 1-2. "On the intermediates, we made a choice with the set-up and then they only allowed us to drive in almost slick conditions," said the Dutchman. "That was a bit disappointing because we spoke, after Silverstone, about being a little more cautious, but this was the other extreme for me. "So, the choice that we made with the set-up of the car was then the wrong one, because they didn't allow us to race in the wet. "And, once we had the dry tyres, we were just too slow on the straights. That with all the general balance problems I have with this car just made everything worse." str/ea
Yahoo
19 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Hamilton agrees with Verstappen that Belgian GP should not have been delayed
Lewis Hamilton said he agreed with Max Verstappen that the start of the Belgian Grand Prix should not have been suspended. Verstappen branded race director Rui Marques' move to bring out the red flag after a single formation lap in the rain at Spa-Francorchamps as 'silly' and 'way too cautious'. Following a delay of one hour and 20 minutes – which the FIA said was due to 'poor visibility' – the race eventually got under way, albeit in a rolling start after four laps behind the safety car. Hamilton was able to switch from intermediates to dry tyres after just seven racing laps. And when it was put to Hamilton, who made up 11 places to finish seventh, that Verstappen claimed the race should have started immediately, he replied: 'I would agree. My car was set up for that, and they waited for it to dry. Especially at the end. It was a dry line with hardly any spray.' There have been 49 driver/rider fatalities at Spa-Francorchamps in the last 100 years – most recently Dutch 18-year-old Dilano Van 't Hoff in 2023, and Frenchman Anthonie Hubert in a Formula Two race four years previously. The last Formula One race at Silverstone also took place in wet conditions, and Hamilton, 40, continued: 'It was just a reaction to Silverstone. 'We sat down and spoke about it after Silverstone. Lots of drivers in the last race said we shouldn't have restarted, because of a lack of visibility. And as soon as someone up ahead said, 'visibility is pretty bad' which, it wasn't great but it wasn't as bad as the last race, they just decided to wait. 'They still did a good job. Of course we did miss some of the extreme wet weather racing, which would have been nice. But for some reason the spray here is like a fog.' In 2021, the rain-hit race was abandoned after just two laps behind the safety car. Defending the decision to delay the start of Sunday's event, Hamilton's Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc said: 'On a track like this you cannot forget about the history and what has happened in the past so I would rather be safe than go early.' Oscar Piastri, who won in Belgium to extend his championship lead over Lando Norris to 16 points, continued: 'We have given the FIA feedback that we would much rather be on the safe side. 'If you were being picky you might say we could have done one fewer lap behind the safety car but is the risk worth it? 'The first time we tried to start the race, with only Lando ahead, I couldn't see a thing, so you can imagine what it is like for the guys at the back.'
Yahoo
19 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Revealed – Which Two Italy Stars Inter Milan & Napoli Would Have Swapped Had Simone Inzaghi Stayed
Inter Milan had been ready to make a swap deal involving Davide Frattesi and Giacomo Raspadori had Simone Inzaghi stayed coach. This via FCInter1908. The change of coach, however, has changed the fortunes of Frattesi who now looks clearly set to remain at Inter. It is not secret that Davide Frattesi looked to be on the way out at Inter not long ago. The Italian international had reportedly already asked to leave in January. This was due to a lack of playing time. And despite a few signs that things were changing towards the end of last season, the Champions League final seemed to be the last straw. Frattesi reportedly had a bust-up with Inzaghi over the fact that he didn't even feature as a substitute. Inter Were Ready To Make Frattesi Raspadori Swap Had Inzaghi Stayed MILAN, ITALY – MARCH 30: Davide Frattesi of FC Internazionale celebrates after scoring their team's secon goal during the Serie A match between FC Internazionale and Udinese Calcio at Stadio Giuseppe Meazza on March 30, 2025 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by) Therefore, reported via FCInter1908, Inter would have been ready to offload Frattesi. And among the clubs interested in the 25-year-old are Napoli. The Partenopei also have a player who has been of interest to Inter – forward Giacomo Raspadori. And Raspadori himself looks as though he may well be ready to leave Naples. Therefore, a swap deal involving the two Italian internationals and former Sassuolo players could have been in the offing. However, that all changed when Simone Inzaghi decided to leave for the riches of Al-Hilal. Cristian Chivu arrived as Inter coach to replace Inzaghi. And the Romanian is ready to give Frattesi a chance at Inter.
