Max Verstappen has admitted that he has to \u201cconvince himself again\u201d every day to stay motivated in light of a frustrating start to the F1 2026 season.<\/p>\n
Verstappen has made no secret of his dislike of the new regulations for F1 2026, memorably likening the new-look Formula 1 to \u201cFormula E on steroids\u201d during pre-season testing in February.<\/p>\n
Max Verstappen struggling for motivation in F1 2026 season<\/p>\n
Want more PlanetF1.com coverage? Add us as a preferred source on Google<\/a> to your favourites list for news you can trust<\/p>\n The four-time world champion, who will participate in the Nurburgring 24 hours next month in the latest step in his burgeoning endurance career, warned recently that his unhappiness with the rules could force him to consider his future in the sport.<\/p>\n The Red Bull driver has suffered a frustrating start to the new season, scoring just 12 points across the opening three races in Australia, China, and Japan.<\/p>\n He already trails Mercedes driver and current championship leader Kimi Antonelli by 60 points in the F1 2026 standings.<\/p>\n Go deeper: Max Verstappen has a big decision to make on his F1 future<\/p>\n Will Max Verstappen walk away from Formula 1 over the F1 2026 rules?<\/a><\/p>\n GianPiero Lambiase McLaren move raises fresh questions over Max Verstappen\u2019s Red Bull future<\/a><\/p>\n Verstappen suffered a new blow earlier this week when it was announced that his long-serving race engineer, GianPiero Lambiase, is to join McLaren \u2018no later\u2019 than the 2028 season.<\/p>\n The Dutchman had previously warned that he would retire if he were ever to split from Lambiase, who has worked with Verstappen since his Red Bull debut in 2016.<\/p>\n However, Verstappen\u2019s father Jos claimed earlier this week that the Red Bull driver will \u201cjust carry on\u201d after Lambiase\u2019s exit<\/a>, having revealed that the Verstappen camp had encouraged the engineer to take up a \u201chuge opportunity\u201d with McLaren.<\/p>\n Speaking before Lambiase\u2019s departure was announced, Verstappen confessed that he is having to convince himself \u201cevery day\u201d to keep his motivation high.<\/p>\n Asked how difficult it is to stay motivated in 2026, he replied: \u201cIt\u2019s a valid question.<\/p>\n \u201cEvery day I wake up, I convince myself again. Many times.\u201d<\/p>\n He went on to insist that his lack of motivation is not related to life at Red Bull, insisting the team continues to \u201cgive everything\u201d to provide him with the best chance of success.<\/p>\n Verstappen said: \u201cI enjoy working with everyone, for sure.<\/p>\n \u201cEveryone is also trying their best, but it\u2019s a lot of stuff together that at the moment is just not as nice for me.<\/p>\n \u201cBut that has nothing to do with the people in the team because I know they work very hard and they give everything to give me basically the best opportunity.\u201d<\/p>\n As reported by PlanetF1.com last week<\/a>, one of Verstappen\u2019s most senior pit crew members, Ole Schack, is also set to leave Red Bull in the coming months.<\/p>\n Schack has attended every single race in the history of Red Bull Racing with the Dane\u2019s stint with the Milton Keynes outfit stretching back to when the team competed as Jaguar prior to 2005.<\/p>\n Jon Caller, Verstappen\u2019s number one mechanic, is also understood to have tendered his resignation.<\/p>\n Caller\u2019s decision to leave comes after his brother Matt left Red Bull for the new-look Audi F1 team over the winter.<\/p>\n Additional reporting by Thomas Maher<\/p>\n Want to be the first to know exclusive information from the F1 paddock? Join our broadcast channel on WhatsApp<\/a> to get the scoop on the latest developments from our team of accredited journalists.<\/p>\n You can also subscribe to the PlanetF1 YouTube channel<\/a> for exclusive features, hear from our paddock journalists with stories from the heart of Formula 1 and much more!<\/p>\n