Ever since the start of this year, there has been a lot of speculation on where Max Verstappen will drive in 2026. Rumours started to emerge as Red Bull’s pace over the last few months started to fade. Now that Red Bull is not the fastest car on the grid, many in the paddock feel that Max could be looking elsewhere for a seat in 2026.
Mercedes team principal, Toto Wolff has been very vocal on wanting to get the Dutch driver to join the team. Even Aston Martin has given an open invitation to Max to join if he pleases. Aston Martin recently signed Adrian Newey which could be more appealing for Verstappen. But now, the Max himself has felt that it is time to address these rumours.
Max Verstappen talks about driver market rumours
Ahead of the Singapore GP, Max Verstappen sat down for an exclusive with Sky Sports Italy. Here, he was asked about the rumours suggesting that he would follow Newey to Aston Martin.
“People talk about these things a lot more than I do.” Max said.
“I’m very relaxed, I just think about driving and trying to understand my problems and improve. Then I go home and live my life. I’m quite relaxed about the future. For me it’s very simple, I enjoy what I do and as long as I enjoy it I’ll stay here and continue to drive in F1. If I want to go somewhere else, I’ll go somewhere else. But at the moment it’s not in my head.”
⚠️ | Lawrence Stroll reportedly has his sights set on an Aston Martin swoop for Max Verstappen.
Talks to make this happen are reportedly already in progress.
Italian publication Autosprint which correctly called Newey to Aston Martin claims Stroll is now ‘aiming for’… pic.twitter.com/df34CU7MLh
— Fastest Pitstop (@FastestPitStop) September 11, 2024
He was then asked if he would go to another team if they offered a better car to win the Championship.
“For my part, I think I’ve been in this team for a long time. Then of course people always want to win, everyone in the paddock wants to win. So you can very easily switch from one side to another over the years.
“But I don’t want my career in F1 to be like that, I don’t want to be part of four or five teams. I want to build a long and stable and nice relationship with everyone in the team and feel at home. Changing teams often is not nice for me. It’s also something I don’t want to do at this stage of my career.
“My next step, if there ever is one, will be my last step. But the next step could also be the renewal with the team. Everything is up in the air at the moment.”
Although it’s not in his head, Max did say that he would go elsewhere if he wanted to. He also mentioned that he could switch teams once more in his career.
As it stands, Verstappen has a contract with Red Bull until the end of the 2028 season. However, there could be an exit clause in the contract which will allow him to leave before 2028.
Is there a release clause in Max Verstappen’s contract?
Over the months, there has been a lot of talk about Max Verstappen’s release clause. If Max does have a release clause, it could allow him to leave the team midway through his contract. When he was asked about this during his exclusive with Sky Sports Italy, he said:
“Maybe yes or maybe no. I repeat, I’m not thinking about this at the moment, because there are so many things this year that I want to try to understand and do better than in the years to come and what will happen after is still far away for me. So I don’t have it in my head at the moment.”
⚠️ | Helmut Marko speaks out about the rumours of Max Verstappen leaving to go to Aston Martin:
“Max drives where he can win,” said Marko to Kleine Zeitung.
“Aston Martin has the most modern factory, the wind tunnel will be operational next year and Honda engines will be added… pic.twitter.com/IbYhwhq7xd
— Fastest Pitstop (@FastestPitStop) September 12, 2024
Verstappen is trying to dodge the question about his release clause. If he didn’t have one, he could have just said so and it would have put an end to the rumours and reports. Instead, he gave a very dodgy response which could indicate that he does have a release clause.
If Verstappen is planning to leave Red Bull, it will be after the 2025 season. So we will have to wait till next year to get confirmation on where the Dutch driver will drive for the 2026 season. Do you think Max will leave Red Bull after the 2025 season? Post your thoughts in the comments section below.
