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Charles Leclerc signing his new Ferrari contract has left Carlos Sainz as Red Bull’s only option if they have to replace Max Verstappen, amid his persistent threats to leave F1.
Ferrari announced on Wednesday that Leclerc has signed a new contract that the team state will keep him in red “for the coming seasons”. The Monegasque’s previous terms were set to run through 2029, but the Scuderia moved early to lock their academy product down again.
It is said that Leclerc’s new Ferrari contract runs beyond 2030, and it is also said to be worth around €50m per year (£43m) whereas his previous deal was worth €34m (£29.5m). Leclerc opting to sign new terms with Ferrari also puts to bed all links about a potential move away.
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Carlos Sainz is now Red Bull’s only option if Max Verstappen retires from F1 after 2026
Red Bull have regularly been touted as a potential option for Leclerc if he were to ever want to leave Ferrari, and those claims had intensified amid Verstappen threatening to leave. It is said that Laurent Mekies would love Red Bull to sign Leclerc, if they need a new main driver.
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Mekies and Red Bull will need to look elsewhere, however, if Verstappen’s persistent threats to retire from F1 after 2026 prove to be genuine rather than a tactic to put pressure on F1 to change the engine regulations. Verstappen refuses to hide his sheer hatred for the new PUs.
Red Bull’s obvious alternative to Leclerc is clear, though, as Sainz might yet be on the market at the end of 2026 and able to replace Verstappen next season. Recent reports have claimed that Sainz’s manager has approached Red Bull, too, given he is out of contract with Williams.
Sainz joined Williams on an initial two-year contract after he was released by Ferrari, and the Spaniard’s deal includes options to stay in 2027 and 2028. But Williams’ inability to regularly be among the podium contenders in 2026 may tempt Sainz to quit if a better option arrives.
The Spaniard’s days at McLaren and Ferrari also offer Red Bull proof that he could handle an opportunity that passed him by when they favoured promoting Verstappen from Toro Rosso back in 2016. Sainz was very much a match for Lando Norris and Leclerc over those years.
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Another driver to have widely been linked with a move to Red Bull if Verstappen does leave F1 is McLaren rival Oscar Piastri. However, while Red Bull would be interested in Piastri, the idea of the Australian leaving Woking – let alone moving to Milton Keynes – seems unlikely.
It was recently reported that Red Bull GmbH CEO Oliver Mintzlaff and team principal Mekies both rate Piastri as Red Bull’s Plan B to retaining Verstappen. Mekies believes Piastri has the experience to replace Verstappen, which Isack Hadjar, Liam Lawson and Arvid Lindblad lack.
McLaren team principal Andrea Stella believes the reports linking Piastri with a move to Red Bull are just “silly season” rumours, though. Stella could not be happier with the efforts that Piastri gives McLaren, and he is confident that the 25-year-old is also happy to be in papaya.
“I think we are already fully in this silly season,” Stella said on the Friday ahead of the 2026 Canadian Grand Prix. “When we think about Oscar, we couldn’t be happier.
“I think we are seeing the best Oscar in the cockpit, and also a happy Oscar, and the best version of himself outside the cockpit.
“Great dynamics and relationship with Lando, and I think the team is in its strongest shape since I’ve been team principal. So, definitely it’s very clear, the direction for maximum stability at McLaren.”
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