Max Verstappen has not yet offered certainty about his Formula 1 future in Silverstone on Thursday. The reigning world champion has a contract with Red Bull until 2028, but does not want to confirm that he will actually drive for the team next year.
George Russell had earlier on Thursday extensively addressed questions about his future. The Brit even stated that the chance of him not driving for Mercedes next year is “exceptionally small.” But Verstappen kept it short when it came to his future.
Surrounded by dozens of journalists in the Red Bull motorhome, he remained vague. “I have nothing more to report than I already said last week. Nothing has changed from my side,” said the reigning world champion.
The question of where Verstappen will drive next year has therefore not been answered yet. And certainly not by the Limburger himself. He referred to an earlier answer, which he gave last week to the question of whether he will compete for Red Bull in 2026.
An answer did not come then either, but a reminder of 2024. Verstappen received the same question in Austria a year ago. His answer then was: “Yes”. By answering the question then and not now, Verstappen himself keeps the space for speculation open.
That speculation was already there this week, mainly in Italian media. Verstappen would have given his word to Mercedes. “There are all sorts of people who invent assumptions. But I don’t participate in that,” Verstappen himself said.
Verstappen rules out sabbatical
Verstappen was also asked why his ‘camp’ is talking to Mercedes. “Who says that?” he asked. “Mercedes,” was the answer. Verstappen remained silent for a moment. “I have nothing to add,” the Limburger responded.
Later in the conversation, there was another reference to his contract with Red Bull, and a smile at questions about possible clauses in his contract. “I don’t talk about my contract. That’s easier for everyone.”
Formula 1 remains a priority for Verstappen for the time being, although he is increasingly eager to explore other branches of motorsport. Possibly that will even be in combination with the premier class. But taking a year off from Formula 1 to do just that is excluded. “No, certainly not,” Verstappen answered the question of whether he is considering a ‘sabbatical’.
‘It’s not about a decision at the moment’
The four-time world champion mainly wanted to emphasize that it is not about next year at all for him now. “It’s not about a decision at the moment. It’s not about 2026 or whatever for me. I focus on what lies ahead. I work with the team.”
That work consists of improving the car. With the RB21, according to Verstappen, it is currently not possible to win races on its own. “We are of course not where we want to be, but we are still competing for the podium places. You can also drive at the back. Hard work is being done,” he said.
“But we had to put in a lot of effort last year to find out the problems then, and that still has an effect. Are we going to reach the McLaren level? Probably not, but that’s how Formula 1 works. Sometimes you have dominant years, sometimes less or not at all.”
Important weeks for Red Bull
Red Bull is introducing new updates for the car again this weekend. The team is obviously trying to move forward with that. But Red Bull also wants to show Verstappen that the team is able to take concrete steps despite the departure of top people.
The leader spoke a few races ago about “very important weeks” that were coming up for Red Bull. And possibly also for his future with the team.
Yet Verstappen was mild in Silverstone on Thursday for the team he has been driving for for ten seasons. “If you look at earlier periods, nobody would have expected McLaren to do so well now. It just takes time to get everything right,” he said.
“With us it is the opposite. We had everything in order and now we are having a hard time. We need to figure out why that is. Why aren’t we making the same progress as other teams?”
‘Nobody knows for sure where they stand in 2026’
Team boss Christian Horner mainly points to the “tools” of Red Bull that would be less than with the competition. This concerns, for example, the wind tunnel, which is the oldest of all Formula 1 teams. “Maybe,” Verstappen responded to the question of whether that is the reason.
Apart from Verstappen’s future, 2026 is the year that is becoming increasingly important in the premier class. New cars, new engines. That year starts with completely rewritten technical rules. Such a reset can shake things up, as happened in 2022.
Verstappen dismissed the suggestion that Mercedes will get the best out of it with a strong engine. “Nobody can say with 100 percent certainty how they are doing in 2026. There are so many things we don’t know yet. Maybe very different things will be asked of a car then.”