Max Verstappen considers retirement
The four-time champion is not enjoying the new F1 and, according to De Telegraaf, is considering walking away after 2026.
Max Verstappen is drifting away from the new Formula 1. The poor run of results isn’t helping: Red Bull is currently buried in the midfield and miles away from the podiums. But for Verstappen, 27, the issue goes far beyond performance. The Dutchman points directly to the feeling behind the wheel of this new generation of cars.
De Telegraaf, the outlet closest to the four‑time champion, now reports that Verstappen is weighing retirement at the end of the season. He’s under contract with Red Bull through 2028, though certain clauses were softened in recent years to allow him an exit after 2026. The idea was to give him flexibility if the team slipped after the rule changes - but those same clauses also make it possible that he’ll step away from the sport entirely.
“Is it worth it?”
Verstappen himself hinted at it in an interview with the BBC. “I’m thinking about everything inside this paddock,” he said. “Privately I’m very happy. You also wait for 24 races. This time it’s 22. But normally 24. And then you just think about is it worth it? Or do I enjoy being more at home with my family? Seeing my friends more when you’re not enjoying your sport?”
“Once I sit in the car it’s not the most enjoyable”
He added: “I can easily accept to be in P7 or P8 where I am. Because I also know that you can’t be dominating or be first or second or whatever, fighting for a podium every time. I’m very realistic in that and I’ve been there before. I’ve not only been winning in F1. But at the same time when you are in P7 or P8 and you are not enjoying the whole formula behind it, it doesn’t feel natural to a racing driver.
“Of course I try to adapt to it, but it’s not nice the way you have to race. It’s really anti-driving. Then at one point, yeah, it’s just not what I want to do [..]. I want to be here to have fun and have a great time and enjoy myself. At the moment that’s not really the case.
“Of course I do enjoy certain aspects. I enjoy working with my team. It’s like a second family. But once I sit in the car it’s not the most enjoyable, unfortunately. I’m trying. I keep telling myself every day to try and enjoy it. It’s just very hard.”
Verstappen’s battery frustration
It’s clear that the 2026 version of Verstappen is, at the very least, different. On Thursday he kicked an English journalist out of the Red Bull hospitality area as payback for a question asked in Abu Dhabi in 2025. On Saturday, he qualified behind Isack Hadjar, his teammate at the energy‑drink outfit. A year ago at this very circuit, Verstappen won from pole while holding off two faster McLarens for the entire race. He didn’t win the title last season, but he kept the fight alive until the final lap and missed a fifth championship by just two points.
Now in his 13th F1 season - with 71 wins, 48 poles, and 127 podiums - Verstappen would trigger a seismic shift in the driver market if he chose to change teams - but he is instead pondering a future outside the sport. This comes despite interest from Mercedes, and despite the fact Ferrari is the one team capable of meeting his salary demands - over $55 million per season. It’s not even about comfort within his current environment, despite Red Bull having phased out figures like Christian Horner, Helmut Marko, and Adrian Newey over the past year.
What frustrates Verstappen most is the constant battery management and regeneration required by the new Formula 1 cars, especially at Suzuka. After Oliver Bearman’s accident, the FIA confirmed it will hold multiple meetings with teams and engine manufacturers to explore potential solutions - changes that could improve the show and better suit driver preferences. And ideally, ones that could be implemented as early as Miami.
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