Story byMotorsport photoStuart CodlingSat, February 14, 2026 at 2:57 PM UTC·4 min readJust under a year ago the first rumours emerged that Max Verstappen was actively trying to extract himself from Red Bull, and perhaps Formula 1 entirely. The team's general pattern of underperformance in the first half of the 2024 season left the way open for Verstappen to trigger a performance clause in his contract – and, more worryingly for Red Bull, he appeared to be losing interest in F1 itself, openly engaging in sim and sportscar races. AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementA change of leadership and a competitive turnaround set his head pointing in the right direction once more, but the Austrian outfit will not want that to happen again. In that context, Verstappen's open contempt for the new 2026 rules and the cars they have produced is concerning. Having one of F1's most bankable stars, a four-time world champion, comparing the product of the new ruleset unfavourably to Formula E, and openly throwing doubt on his future in F1, is embarrassing for the stakeholders and worrying for his employers. As with last season, the only lever Red Bull can pull is to give Max as fast a car as possible and hope the race wins will flow in sufficient quantity for him to park his reservations. "It's not my goal to make him happy," said technical director Pierre Wache when asked what the team can do to make him happier about the present state of affairs. AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement"We can make him happy by winning the race.
