Red Bull Motorsports
F1
Why Max Verstappen’s commitment to one team is rare in F1
F1 history is full of champions switching teams in search of more success, but Max Verstappen is taking a different path by committing his future to Oracle Red Bull Racing.
Four-time Formula One world champion Max Verstappen has put pen to paper on a long-term deal that will keep him with Oracle Red Bull Racing until at least 2030. It means one of the most successful partnerships in F1 history is to run and run.
The announcement, which was made ahead of Verstappen’s home Grand Prix at Zandvoort, ended months of speculation. The 2026 season had seen teams struggling to get to grips with a challenging new set of driving regulations, and Verstappen had spoken openly about quitting the series, with rumours of a move to McLaren and Mercedes.
Max Verstappen will be with Red Bull Racing until at least 2030
© Getty Images/Red Bull Content Pool
01
Why would Verstappen have changed teams?
There are more examples of world champions switching teams than extending their contracts. In 1994 and 1995, Michael Schumacher – partnered with Verstappen’s father Jos – took back-to-back World Championships with Benetton (now Alpine), beating the all-conquering Williams team.
But the German was tempted by a move to Ferrari to take on a new challenge. The Scuderia hadn’t won a title since 1983, but they were improving on track, were ambitious and had funding. They were also willing to pay Schumacher €60m a year and build the team around him. He signed in 1996. In 1997, he recruited Benetton Technical Director Ross Brawn and designer Rory Byrne to join him at Maranello and by 1999 they were Constructors’ World Champions and Schumacher’s five consecutive Drivers’ Championships followed in 2000-2004.
Verstappen has four world titles – three behind Schumacher and Hamilton
© Getty Images/Red Bull Content Pool
Those seven titles made Schumi the most successful driver in F1 history, but in 2010 he was drawn out of retirement to join the fledgling Mercedes team, where the German laid the foundations for its future championship success. When Schumacher retired for a second time, Mercedes had a natural successor lined up. Lewis Hamilton had won the title with McLaren in 2008 but had been frustrated since then. He replaced Schumacher at Mercedes and what soon followed was eight consecutive Constructors’ titles from 2014 to 2021 and six titles for Hamilton.
There’s even a precedent at Red Bull Racing, too. Sebastian Vettel won four World Championships with the Milton Keynes-based squad, but opted to switch to Ferrari and later Aston Martin.
Sebastian Vettel won four titles with Red Bull before switching to Ferrari
© Getty Images/Red Bull Content Pool
So the pattern for the successful F1 driver is to go in search of greater glory with a new team. Not that drivers are fickle: Hamilton has the record for the most Grands Prix with one team – 246 with Mercedes across 12 seasons.
When it comes to records, the Dutch Grand Prix was Verstappen's 222nd for Oracle Red Bull Racing in 11 seasons. This new deal will take him to at least 15 seasons with the team and see him set new records for the series.
02
Would Verstappen have left F1?
I think I was closer to retiring than changing team
Many had speculated that Verstappen would step away from F1 altogether. He had said as much himself. The Dutchman had enjoyed successful forays into endurance racing, winning on his GT3 race debut at the Nürburgring Nordschleife in 2025 and was close to winning the Nürburgring 24 Hours in 2026. At the press conference in Zandvoort he even quipped to the assembled press: “I think I was closer to retiring than changing team.”
Again, there’s plenty of precedent for stepping away from the sport temporarily. World champions Kimi Räikkönen and Fernando Alonso both took time out from F1, with the Finnish maverick racing in WRC with Red Bull and Citroën in 2010-11 and NASCAR. Alonso won the 24 Hours of Le Mans twice and the World Endurance Championship, and also competed in the Indy 500.
03
Getting to grips with the next generation of F1 cars
After a difficult start to the 2026 season, Verstappen and Oracle Red Bull Racing are building momentum, despite his unfortunate crash on home soil. Red Bull Powertrains’ first engine was the strongest in the field and the RB22 is also looking more competitive: Verstappen's last three finishes before Zandvoort were all on the podium.
Verstappen celebrates with the team following the Hungarian GP
© Getty Images/Red Bull Content Pool
“The team is like a second family for me and I feel very at home,” Verstappen added. “We have shared many incredible moments and won four World Championships. To continue this journey with the same team that I have been with my whole career is really special and something I have always wanted to do.”
“It’s the best driver on the grid deciding to recommit to the team,” said Oracle Red Bull Racing Team Principal Laurent Mekies. “We take it as an incredible demonstration of trust for our people, for our vision, for our culture.”
He added: “Having Max continue with us and retaining the best driver on the grid is fantastic news for everyone at Oracle Red Bull Racing as well as F1 and motorsport as a whole.”
04
Building on success
Verstappen has been a part of Red Bull since 2014 and it’s a partnership that has brought him from the feeder series to the top of the sport’s greatest championship.
Verstappen joined Red Bull when he was 16-years-old
© Philip Platzer/Red Bull Content Pool
That same system is also responsible for providing him with the best possible teammate to help deliver more titles to Milton Keynes. Isack Hadjar has impressed in his first season with the team, while Liam Lawson has regained confidence and is delivering for Racing Bulls. Also in the Racing Bulls garage, Arvid Lindblad looks a huge talent.
The Red Bull Junior Team programme and the Visa Cash App RB Team school of racing is a conveyor belt taking the best talent to the front of the grid. It’s notable that Red Bull’s rivals are trying to replicate that success and develop the perfect driver for their teams. Kimi Antonelli is leading the title race and is jealously guarded by Mercedes.
Red Bull Racing is in good hands with Verstappen and Hadjar
© Getty Images/Red Bull Content Pool
The team brought George Russell to the grid through a similar route. Charles Leclerc is in his seventh season with Ferrari, having been nurtured through their driver academy and serving an apprenticeship with Sauber. Lando Norris has been with McLaren for nine years, seven in a race seat.
As for Verstappen, he already has four F1 World Championships and is third on the list of all-time F1 race winners – and he hasn't turned 30. Who knows what new heights he’ll achieve in the next four years.
