Max Verstappen will remain a Red Bull driver for F1 2026, the speculation of a move to Mercedes having fallen silent.<\/p>\n
And with new regulations on the way for F1 2026, Verstappen\u2019s target is for he and Red Bull to be \u201ccompetitive from the start\u201d by \u201cnailing\u201d the revamped rules.<\/p>\n
Max Verstappen and Red Bull: The leading F1 2026 force?<\/p>\n
Additional reporting by Thomas Maher<\/p>\n
Formula 1\u2019s ground effect era was a story of Verstappen<\/a> dominance until 2024, at which point such performance began to fade. Enter McLaren, which has established itself as the leading force in F1 2025, the final year with the current regulations.<\/p>\n It is all change next season, as new chassis and engine regulation arrive. The cars will become smaller and 30kg lighter, as DRS bows out and active aerodynamics take over. In addition, the Pirelli tyres will become 25 millimeters narrower at the front and 30mm for the rears.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, new engines will be introduced to power the redesigned cars. They will feature a 50\/50 split between electrical power and an internal combustion engine running on fully sustainable biofuels.<\/p>\n Red Bull is a particularly interesting player in Formula 1\u2019s new era, as they have created their own engine for the first time, working in partnership with Ford.<\/p>\n Verstappen had been heavily linked with a move to Mercedes in the latest F1 \u2018silly season\u2019, but that did not come to pass, Verstappen remaining loyal to Red Bull.<\/p>\n When asked by media, including PlanetF1.com, ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix, if he could confirm himself as a Red Bull F1 2026 driver, Verstappen replied: \u201cYeah.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s quite interesting to follow all that, the amount of nice stories certainly that came out of it.<\/p>\n \u201cBut for me, I\u2019ve never really said anything about it because I was just focused on talking to the team about how we can improve our performance, future ideas for next year as well, and that\u2019s why I have nothing really to add ever.<\/p>\n \u201cBut I think it\u2019s time to basically stop all the rumours and, for me, it\u2019s always been quite clear that I was staying anyway.<\/p>\n \u201cI think that was also the general feeling in the team anyway, because we were always in discussions about what we could do with the car.<\/p>\n \u201cI think when you\u2019re not interested in staying then you also stop talking about these kind of things \u2013 and I never did.\u201d<\/p>\n How F1 2026 is shaping up<\/p>\n \ud83d\udc49\u00a0F1 2026: Confirmed teams and power unit suppliers for F1\u2019s huge regulation changes<\/a><\/p>\n \ud83d\udc49\u00a0F1 2026 driver line-up: Who is already confirmed for the 2026 grid?<\/a><\/p>\n The last time the engine formula changed was in 2014, as Mercedes began a streak of eight consecutive Constructors\u2019 Championship wins.<\/p>\n But, Verstappen\u2019s ambition for he and Red Bull is to be right up at that sharp end of the grid in F1 2026.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m very focused on \u201926 with the team, to look ahead and make sure that we nail the regulations, and that we are competitive from the start,\u201d he declared to the Formula 1 website.<\/p>\n \u201cThe team has gone from of course winning championships before I arrived, to when I arrived, a bit through a rebuilding phase, and then we really hit the peak again of winning championships.<\/p>\n \u201cNow I feel like [it\u2019s] slight rebuilding. We\u2019re still of course a very strong team, but I do think that to make again a step up, there\u2019s slight rebuilding or restructuring maybe, and understanding a little bit more what\u2019s going on, and that of course takes a little bit of time, but hopefully not too much time.<\/p>\n \u201cI think that\u2019s also a bit the mentality of the team [to fight back from a dip], it\u2019s always been like that, so I\u2019m not too worried about that.\u201d<\/p>\n The Verstappen to Mercedes speculation had been fuelled by a performance-related exit clause in Verstappen\u2019s Red Bull contract. It is believed that had he been fourth or lower in the Drivers\u2019 Championship standings<\/a> at the summer break, he would have been able to trigger it.<\/p>\n Red Bull senior advisor Helmut Marko believes it makes sense for Verstappen to stay and observe how they start out in F1\u2019s new era. The outcome could then play a big role in what Verstappen decided to do from there.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t know what considerations he made, personally and with his management, but it was clear from his statements that he wanted to stay,\u201d Marko said of Verstappen to F1-Insider.<\/p>\n \u201cEven if the escape clause had come into effect\u2026 Nobody knows what the situation will be like in 2026.<\/p>\n \u201cMercedes declares itself the favourite, but there is no evidence.<\/p>\n \u201cAlso in terms of chassis, you don\u2019t know who will hit the jackpot. There is a lot of uncertainty.<\/p>\n \u201cFrom his perspective, it makes much more sense to stay, wait and see.<\/p>\n \u201cIf it turns out next year that we are not competitive, he can always reconsider his decision.\u201d<\/p>\n