Max Verstappen moves closer to possibly ending his contract with Red Bull.
Max Verstappen is reportedly getting closer to using a clause that could let him end his Red Bull contract at the end of this season.
The 28-year-old finished fourth at the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix last weekend, putting him seventh in the standings after seven races. Verstappen is now 101 points behind the leader, Kimi Antonelli, and 60 points behind Lewis Hamilton, who is in second place.
This matters because Verstappen’s current contract with Red Bull Racing reportedly has an option letting him leave if he isn’t in the top two by the summer break. There are still four races left before the break, starting with the Austrian Grand Prix next week, followed by races in Britain, Belgium, and Hungary. After that, the season pauses for almost a month.
With these races and a Sprint, there are 108 points available, making it almost impossible for Verstappen to catch up to Antonelli. There’s a tiny chance he could move up to second place, but that would mean winning multiple races and hoping the six drivers ahead of him face big problems.
While it could be possible to catch some of the drivers like Antonelli, Hamilton, Russell, Leclerc, Norris, or Piastri, passing five of them seems very unlikely.
Right now, this is just a possibility, but Verstappen might decide to use the clause at the season’s end. He has said before that he plans to stay with Red Bull through 2028, but that could change if the team keeps falling behind Mercedes, Ferrari, and McLaren.
Verstappen will want Red Bull to improve and won’t want to go through another year struggling to keep up. If the team can’t match his goals, ending the contract might become a real option.