The Milton Keynes team were at serious risk of seeing their star slip through their fingers, as Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff held talks with Verstappen<\/a>. But Red Bull breathed a sigh of relief when it became impossible for the four-time champion to leave at the end of 2025.<\/p>\n Verstappen<\/a> needed to hit the summer break fourth or lower in the F1 drivers\u2019 championship<\/a> for the release clause in his contract with Red Bull to become available. But the Dutchman is third, with a 15-point margin over Mercedes rival George Russell, which annulled the clause.<\/p>\n Still, Red Bull hold the keys to three of the eight available seats on the 2026 F1 grid. Red Bull are still to decide if Yuki Tsunoda<\/a> will stay for another term, and also have decisions to make over the Racing Bulls<\/a> line-up. Isack Hadjar<\/a> and Liam Lawson<\/a> are not confirmed for 2026 yet.<\/p>\n It is widely expected that Red Bull will release Tsunoda at the end of 2025<\/a>, with the 25-year-old out of contract after this season. Tsunoda is also yet to convincingly prove himself at Red Bull since the Japanese star replaced Lawson in March, with the Kiwi axed after two rounds.<\/p>\n READ MORE: Alex Jacques does not think \u2018anyone would fancy\u2019 replacing one F1 driver now<\/a><\/p>\n TEAMDRIVER 1DRIVER 2AlpinePierre GaslyN\/AAston MartinFernando AlonsoLance StrollAudiGabriel BortoletoNico HulkenbergCadillacN\/AN\/AFerrariCharles LeclercLewis HamiltonHaasEsteban OconOliver BearmanMcLarenLando NorrisOscar PiastriMercedesN\/AN\/ARacing BullsN\/AN\/ARed Bull RacingMax VerstappenN\/AWilliamsAlex AlbonCarlos Sainz2026 confirmed F1 drivers<\/p>\n Motorsport adviser Helmut Marko has confirmed Red Bull will decide Tsunoda\u2019s future after the summer<\/a>, having seen the Kanagawa native now go seven rounds without a single point. Tsunoda has not scored in as many Grands Prix as the number of points he has for Red Bull.<\/p>\n F1 commentator Jacques believes Tsunoda, Hadjar and Lawson all stand a chance of driving for Red Bull in 2026 given the lack of an experienced alternative who can help them rebuild. If he were available, Jacques would not question Red Bull eying Nico Hulkenberg<\/a> of Sauber<\/a>.<\/p>\n Jacques told F1 Oversteer: \u201cIt\u2019s a big question, isn\u2019t it? Because you can make a case for all three of them. There\u2019s no one out there with that experience that you could have signed.<\/p>\n \u201cI think if Hulkenberg was out of contract, for example, at the end of the year, I think there\u2019s a fair chance that they might look for experience, as they tried to rebuild back to the front in the same way that they did with Sergio Perez<\/a> a couple of years ago.<\/p>\n \u201cBut, equally, let\u2019s see where we are with a couple of races with Yuki Tsunoda. He\u2019s had two races with a team principal who\u2019s trying to get the best out of him.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t ever think that previous management rated Tsunoda. I mean, the fact that they bypassed him to put Lawson in the car at the start of the year said as much.<\/p>\n \u201cThat robbed him of a pre-season. He made his debut for Red Bull at his home race under all the media scrutiny. Inevitably, in that second car, there\u2019s going to be a loss of confidence.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2018No reason\u2019 Yuki Tsunoda cannot convince Red Bull to re-sign him for the 2026 F1 season Red Bull spoke to Hulkenberg before signing Perez for 2021<\/a>, with the Mexican then enjoying three terms in Milton Keynes. Horner ultimately let Perez go at the close of the 2024 season and promoted Lawson, but quickly canned the Kiwi for Tsunoda after two point-less rounds.<\/p>\n![\"Racing](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/GettyImages-2216476788-1024x683.jpg\")
Photo by Mark Thompson\/Getty ImagesAlex Jacques thinks Red Bull could target an experienced F1 driver like Nico Hulkenberg<\/p>\n![\"Red](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/GettyImages-2226633807-1024x683.jpg\")
Photo by Jakub Porzycki\/NurPhoto via Getty Images<\/p>\n