Max Verstappen’s title defence in 2024 was one of his hardest, with the Red Bull driver winning it in the third fastest car.
After he became the first driver in 40 years to achieve the feat, Damon Hill said it ‘says it all’ about Verstappen and his abilities in Formula 1.
It was a remarkable turnaround by Verstappen given Red Bull’s form dropped off throughout the year, with him suffering a 11-race win drought in between victories at the Spanish and Qatar Grands Prix.
Red Bull started off the season strong but was embroiled in a controversy involving team principal Christian Horner, which led to him trying to sack Helmut Marko at the Saudi Arabian GP.
Verstappen has a clause in his contract that enables him to walk if Marko leaves, which prompted speculation that he could end up elsewhere on the grid by 2025. Lewis Hamilton’s exit to Ferrari prompted an opening at Mercedes, with Toto Wolff keen on eyeing a match-up with Verstappen rating his chances at 10 to 1.
While any move to Mercedes looks unlikely shortly after George Russell’s media furore at the Abu Dhabi GP, the 2025 season could prove to be difficult for Red Bull according to journalist Nelson Valkenburg on The Race podcast.
Red Bull in ‘horrible situation’ with Max Verstappen in 2025
The 2025 Red Bull will likely be an evolution of the RB20, which means they could still face the same problems as last year.
Liam Lawson will be stepping up in place of Sergio Perez, after the Mexican underperformed in their third-best car last year. His feedback will be crucial to development, while Verstappen will want assurance that Red Bull is the right place to be according to Valkenburg.
“We’re in this situation where it’s a question of who blinks first by switching to the 2026 car? Yes, Red Bull might be forced if they are close to a title to keep pouring resources into a car to at least keep their lead driver onboard and that must be a horrible situation to be in, but it’s a situation that’s been created by a couple of decisions,” said Valkenburg.
“Also, he is about to become a father in the next few months, and if he’s not in the title fight, then what happens next? What happens when he’s fighting for fifth and he has to choose between driving a car that he hates or extra time with the family? Red Bull is stuck with this situation.”
Max Verstappen thinks Red Bull can ‘unlock more’ despite tough 2024 season
Verstappen has a very particular driving style that requires a lot of grip at the front axle, which makes the car very sensitive to drive.
Not only does this make it difficult for teammates to keep up, but it also exposes issues quicker as they need to deal with loss of rear-end grip.
READ MORE: Why Ayrton Senna’s former teammate thinks Max Verstappen has ‘the edge’ over Brazilian F1 legend
Red Bull has recovered from setbacks before, notably at the start of the 2022 season when they were plagued by reliability issues while Ferrari won races.
Verstappen is confident that Red Bull can turn things around in 2025, having seen how much they improved towards the end of 2024.
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