Christian Horner openly admits Red Bull are ‘considering’ 14-podium driver for 2026

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Red Bull have been at the centre of the Formula 1 driver market this year, and that will continue into 2025. The future is uncertain for both Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez.

Ostensibly, Verstappen is under contract until the end of 2028. But his deal features multiple exit clauses that could come into play.

For instance, Verstappen can reportedly leave Red Bull if he isn’t in the top three of the world championship after the early rounds of the 2025 season. That would indicate that the team have fallen short of his expectations.

Red Bull know that Verstappen is one of the greatest drivers of all time, and they may grant any request he makes if it means they can keep him. On the other hand, Perez will once again have to prove his worth.

It’s still unclear whether the Mexican will even make it to next year’s Australian GP after his 2024 campaign unravelled. He’s recently given the team cause for encouragement, quietening the noise.

Perez signed a new one-plus-one contract with Red Bull back in June. That means he’ll have to meet certain performance benchmarks to trigger the second year of his deal.

Liam Lawson is set to replace Daniel Ricciardo at RB and race alongside Yuki Tsunoda. Both of those drivers will naturally be vying for an opportunity at the top team.

Christian Horner says Red Bull are interested in signing George Russell for 2026

Speaking to Sky Sports F1, however, team principal Christian Horner insisted that they aren’t ‘afraid’ to look outside their stable for driving talent. Indeed, they signed Perez from Force India at the end of 2020.

One driver who’s on Red Bull’s radar for 2026 is George Russell. Russell’s Mercedes deal runs out in just over 12 months’ time.

Ironically, his future may hinge on Verstappen. Toto Wolff is determined to sign the world champion, and that would come at the expense of either Russell or his newly signed teammate Kimi Antonelli.

Horner admits that it would be ‘foolish’ not to consider a move for Russell. The 26-year-old has won two races, scored three pole positions and bagged 14 podiums.

Horner said: “We’re not afraid to go out of the pool. George Russell is out of contract at the end of next year. It would be foolish not to take that into consideration.”

George Russell has given Lewis Hamilton ‘baggage’ to bring to Ferrari

Horner will have taken note of how well Russell has performed against Lewis Hamilton, statistically the most successful driver in F1 history. Russell is 23 points behind Hamilton in the standings but, ahead of the Singapore Grand Prix, he leads their Sunday head-to-head 9-5.

He also sealed the intra-Mercedes qualifying battle with seven races to spare in Baku. Hamilton will bring ‘baggage’ to Ferrari, 1997 world champion Jacques Villeneuve says, after losing out on a Saturday.

They have been closely matched throughout their time at Brackley. Russell scored more points in 2022 following his arrival from Williams, then lost out last year.

Red Bull aren’t the only team who could be keen. Audi are also interested in Russell, though he’d surely favour the established winners at Milton Keynes.