Red Bull insists that Max Verstappen won’t ditch the team for ‘incomprehensible amount of money’ 

Max Verstappen has multiple performance clauses in his Red Bull contract that might help hm exit the team early.

Red Bull insists that Max Verstappen won’t ditch the team for ‘incomprehensible amount of money’ 

Helmut Marko, Max Verstappen, and Christian Horner (via IMAGO)

Red Bull has a long-term contract with Dutch Formula One driver Max Verstappen that would only end in 2028. But following Lewis Hamilton‘s 2025 Ferrari move announcement wild rumors about Verstappen being available for Mercedes to pursue spread on social media.  Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko, who previously shot down such rumors has asserted that poaching the Dutchman would be a hard task.

Marko has made it clear that he is not concerned about outside interest in Verstappen. He says the only thing that would tempt Verstappen to look at another team would be an unexpected drop in performance from Red Bull. Marko revealed that Verstappen’s contract contains early termination provisions related to performance and argued that the champion won’t leave the team for any amount of money.

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As in every Formula 1 contract, there are clauses if certain success quality criteria are not met. These are also included in Max's contract. I don't think an incomprehensible amount of money is an issue for Max. If we are not in a position to provide him with a car that is capable of winning…of course he's interested in success as a racing driver. You don't get any younger.
Marko Helmut said via autosport.com

Additionally, he pointed out that Verstappen will look around for a new team if he doesn’t see the light with Red Bull and these requirements are met. However, he wonders if something better could exist. Regarding the second driver’s place at Red Bull, he stated that they would decide on it after seeing the performance of Sergio Perez and Daniel Ricciardo in 2024. 

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Red Bull is the main focus both on and off the track at Bahrain’s pre-season testing

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Christian Horner and Max Verstappen
Christian Horner and Max Verstappen (via IMAGO).

The second reason would be the aggressive RB20 car design by the Red Bull team. The team has removed the horizontal cooling duct from the front, allowing more air mass to flow down the side through two vertical slats beneath the sidepod undercut. The car also features two sizable tunnels running backward from the cockpit to the rear for cooling and minimizing disruption to external air. \

Despite factors such as fuel loads, engine modes, track conditions, and tires, Red Bull’s RB19 proved superior in pre-season testing the previous year. Although nobody anticipated Max Verstappen and Red Bull to produce the most dominant season in Formula One history, the 2023 world champion’s identity was evident from its first serious run. With their new challenger and talented drivers it is pretty clear that Red Bull will dominate the upcoming season. 

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