Max Verstappen has accomplished almost everything there is to achieve in Formula 1. He has won three straight Drivers’ Championships and, while he faces a challenge this year, is en route to his fourth. He has led Red Bull to two Constructors’ Championships, and he has set numerous records in the sport.
This is why it might not be a surprise to see the driver hinting at the end of his career, despite his young age.
During Thursday’s FIA Press Conference Verstappen was asked about the upcoming Dutch Grand Prix, which will mark his 200th race in the sport. Verstappen was asked if he saw himself still in F1 in another 200 races, his response was simple, and to the point.
“No.”
He then elaborated, albeit briefly.
“Nice and easy, yeah. So we passed halfway for sure, but it’s been already, of course, an incredible ride,” said Verstappen. “200, yeah, I mean, it doesn’t feel like 200, but of course we’re doing a lot of races now in a year, so you add them quite quickly.”
Verstappen has long indicated that he does not plan to stay in F1 for long. Earlier this season, facing questions about his future at Red Bull, the driver mentioned that by the time his current contract runs out with the team, he might not want to stick around in F1. “I have a contract with Red Bull until ‘28 — after that, I first want to see if I even want to continue,” he said ahead of this season’s Japanese Grand Prix.
David Croft of Sky Sports F1 pressed Verstappen on the matter, and he noted that there is a long way to go until his contract runs out. That includes a new set of F1 regulations, which Verstappen declared could impact his decision.
“I mean, of course, ‘28 is still very far away but in my mind at the moment, I’m not thinking about a new contract at the moment. I just want to see how it goes,” said Verstappen Thursday. “Also see the new regulations first, you know, if it’s fun or not. And then even in ‘26, ‘27, there’s a lot of time to decide what happens. So I just keep everything open. But yeah, I’m quite easygoing about it.”
On more pressing matters, Verstappen was asked about the title challenge Red Bull faces down the stretch. At the moment Red Bull leads McLaren by just 42 points in the F1 Constructors’ Championship standings, an amount that McLaren could mathematically overcome this weekend. He also leads Lando Norris in the F1 Drivers’ Championship by 78 points, a healthy — but not insurmountable — margin.
Verstappen indicated that he was not worried about those titles.
“I’m not really worried. I’m also not thinking about Abu Dhabi yet. I just want to improve as a team. I want to improve the car,” added Verstappen. “I know that if we improve our car, then it makes our lives a bit easier. Because the last few races, of course, have been a bit tough, even though I do believe that if we started on pole in Spa, in our normal starting position, without a penalty, we could have still won the race.
“But it’s just very tight margins. And that’s why also qualifying is always very important. But yeah, the better performance we have from the car, the easier it becomes,” continued the Red Bull driver. “That’s what I think what we showed last year. I don’t expect it to be like last year, but we always want to try and be better. And especially, you know, the situation that we have been in the last few races, we want to come out of that and learn maybe a bit more from the car and be more competitive.”
