Verstappen responds to Red Bull exit fears

Max Verstappen has responded to fears that he would leave the team, outlaid by the team’s adviser Helmut Marko, who shared his concern that the four-time Formula 1 world champion may depart if Red Bull does not improve.

The Milton Keynes-based squad’s RB21 has been characterised as a car that is difficult to drive with a narrow set-up window; although Verstappen has proven that he is able to drive around some of the issues, it has nonetheless hindered his performances.

The Dutchman won the race in Suzuka, but immediately felt the car was on poor form in Bahrain as it struggled for grip in the slower-speed corners. Allied to a difficult race, Verstappen’s manager Raymond Vermeulen was seen remonstrating with Marko in the garage.

Marko later told Sky Germany that “the concern is great” that Verstappen may choose to look elsewhere; this reignited rumours that he may be looking to jump ship to Aston Martin to rejoin Adrian Newey.

Asked about the situation and whether Marko’s concerns were legitimate, Verstappen chose to play them down and stated that his focus was on turning the situation around.

“I don’t know [about the rumours] – I just keep working, trying to improve the car,” he stated.

“Naturally, Bahrain wasn’t a great weekend for us and I think we were all pretty disappointed. But we just keep on trying to improve the car, come up with new ideas to try on the car. Competition is tough, but that’s how I go about my weeks, trying to improve the situation.

“Honestly a lot of people are talking about it, except me. I just want to focus on my car, work with the people in the team – that’s the only thing I’m thinking about in Formula 1. I’m very relaxed.”

Verstappen denied the idea that ructions within the team over the past year had contributed to a difficult environment and stated he was happy where he was – and his issues were simply related to the performance of the car.

Explaining the conversation between Vermeulen and Marko, Verstappen believed that it was good for all parties to feel they can speak openly with frankness about the current situation within, and this demonstrated the level that he cared about the team.

“I am happy [at Red Bull], I’m just not very happy with, of course, our car. But that goes for everyone, we all want to be better, there’s no secret about that. That’s what we’re trying to improve.

“I think we had really good chats in the past weeks about the car. I think we’re all very much aligned, we’re just trying to make the situation better. It doesn’t change anything.

“I’m not thinking about [rumours], I’m just going race by race. Hopefully it’ll be better than Bahrain, if it can be a bit in the middle of the two [with Suzuka] it will be better.

“It’s out of my hands anyway, if we are not the quickest it’s very tough to fight for a championship. I’m hopeful we can still improve things, but let’s see what we get.

Raymond Vermeulen, Manager of Max Verstappen, Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing

Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images

“To my knowledge, I think they were having a conversation about everything, which I think is allowed. I think we were all left frustrated with the result, with the things that went wrong in the race. And I think that’s what Raymond and Helmut spoke about, and Christian [Horner] even came along and they all had a conversation. I think that should be allowed.

“We care, at the end of the day. We care about the team, we care about the people, we care about results. I think that’s quite normal.”

Speaking in the same press conference, Fernando Alonso poured scorn on the rumours that Verstappen was in the frame to replace him at Aston Martin – but perhaps cheekily noted that it was flattering for the team and underlined its planned trajectory.

“I don’t think so, as I have a contract for next year. But I see the rumours, it’s very good for the team. The world champion is sometimes linked with other teams, a possible departure from Red Bull, and the teams they are commenting are Mercedes, Aston Martin, and Ferrari,” Alonso chimed in.

“And that shows the project we are in, and the future that this team has. As I said always, when I extended the contract, I said I would drive for as long as I feel fast.”