For just the second time in the past 12 months, Max Verstappen has failed to win a race that he finished. Lando Norris and McLaren beat him to the chequered flag in Miami.
Verstappen also missed out on victory in Australia in March after taking pole position, but that was because of unreliability. A brake issue took him out of the race in the early stages.
Even here, McLaren needed a healthy dose of luck. Norris extended his opening stint and a safety car played right into his hands, allowing him to come in and retain the lead.
But Verstappen still had the chance to reclaim top spot following the restart. Ultimately, he wasn’t quick enough to do so.
Still, he won’t be all that worried to see Norris streak clear and win by around 7.5 seconds. He retains a commanding lead in the championship and has scored pole position at every single race so far.
The odds are that Verstappen will still wrap up this year’s championship with multiple races to spare. And yet, uncertainty persists over his future at Red Bull.
Max Verstappen could leave Red Bull next year
BBC Sport reporter Andrew Benson has heard from ‘senior sources’ that Verstappen is unlikely to leave the team this year. That will be a blow to Mercedes, who want him to replace Lewis Hamilton.
However, there’s a ‘real possibility’ that the Dutchman could agree an exit for 2026. So soon after Hamilton’s Ferrari move, it would be another seismic development.
Verstappen’s Red Bull contract runs until the end of 2028, but isn’t rock-solid. Executive director and close ally Helmut Marko will apparently activate an exit clause if he leaves the team.
Crucially, Marko has made a pact with Verstappen to give him control of his destiny. He’s ready to walk if the 27-year-old says the word.
Toto Wolff has told his top target that he’ll install Marko at Mercedes if that’s it takes. Red Bull CEO Oliver Mintzlaff insists such a move is ‘impossible’.
And while Verstappen has publicly backed Mintzlaff, there’s an open dialogue with Wolff. They apparently held a meeting on Monday after the race in Miami.
Why would Max Verstappen want to change teams for 2026?
Events of Miami aside, Verstappen remains in the strongest car on the grid. He’s gunning for a fourth consecutive title this year, having won the last two in serenely dominant fashion.
From that point of view, some will be baffled at the notion that he’s even considering a move. But the key factor here is the 2026 regulation reset.
Ordinarily in Formula 1, we see either a significant change to the engine (like in 2014) or the chassis (like in 2022). But in 2026, we’ll witness both at the same time.
The simplified power units will no longer feature an MGU-H, but will rely much more heavily on electrical power. They’ll also run on sustainable fuels.
The sport has yet to finalise the new chassis rules, but we do know that they’ll be lighter and smaller. Inevitably, changes of this scale will mean a reshuffle in the F1 pecking order.
Mercedes stole a march on their rivals in 2014, winning eight straight titles, and Red Bull have taken charge since the beginning of 2022. Verstappen wants to ensure he’s in the best possible place to continue his individual dominance from 2026 onwards.
There are already ‘rumours’ that Red Bull’s new power unit isn’t on the same level as its competitors. They’re out on their own as a partnership with Honda comes to an end.
And that uncertainty may be part of the reason why Verstappen has negotiated another exit clause in his contract, one that allows him to leave if he isn’t enthused by the 2026 project. You’d imagine that Mercedes will be waiting with open arms, even if they have to be patient.
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