After winning four consecutive championships, Max Verstappen will be delighted with how he and Red Bull have fared during this era of F1.
After defeating Lewis Hamilton by the barest of margins in 2021, Verstappen has had everything his own way up until the halfway point of the 2024 campaign.
Now, McLaren and Ferrari will back themselves to have a narrow advantage over Red Bull heading into 2025, but it’s impossible to rule Verstappen out considering the damage limitation he managed to hold off Lando Norris.
One thing that Red Bull will be wary of is how the 27-year-old has always made it clear he doesn’t see himself racing in Formula 1 forever.
Helmut Marko is worried Verstappen could retire from F1 sooner than he or anyone else at Red Bull would like.
Verstappen has previously responded when asked about his post-F1 plans, although his current contract runs until the end of the 2028 season.
Speaking on the SpeedCafe YouTube channel, journalist Mat Coch has shared his thoughts on the Dutchman potentially moving on.
He thinks Red Bull need to have a contingency plan in place sooner rather than later as Verstappen could one day emulate Nico Rosberg’s Formula 1 exit.
Talking about Coch: “You need to start looking at the future and by the future, I mean not just replacing Sergio Perez.
“You need to look at replacing Max Verstappen because he’s always said, he’s in Formula 1 for a good time, not a long time.
“Now, does that good time end at the end of 2025, does he go to 2026, does it go to 2028 when his current contract expires?
“We don’t know the answer to that. There is a very good chance that he’ll pull a Nico Rosberg and go, ‘Enough, I’m out’, and at that point, what does Red Bull do if it doesn’t have its ducks in a row?”
Hamilton’s 2021 battle with Verstappen in Abu Dhabi is iconic, but it’s not the first time he’s been involved in a title decider in the Emirati desert.
Back in 2016, Rosberg went into the final race of the season with a 12-point advantage over Hamilton.
The Brit had won the last three races, with each driver taking it in turns to dominate the season.
Hamilton won in Abu Dhabi that day, but Rosberg came home in second, which was enough to earn him his only title.
Five days later, Rosberg took to social media, confirming that he wouldn’t be returning to race in 2017.
It left Mercedes without one of their star drivers and they had to buy Valtteri Bottas’ Williams contract out.
Red Bull won’t want to be in the same position if Verstappen suddenly decides to call it a day.
It’s way too soon to ask Liam Lawson to lead the team, but Red Bull might return to their interest in both McLaren drivers who appear to be prime candidates should Verstappen suddenly walk away.
