Jenson Button rules out Max Verstappen taking F1 sabbatical as retirement claim made

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Jenson Button has claimed that Max Verstappen will not take a Formula 1 sabbatical amid rumours the Dutchman could walk away from the sport. 

Following last month’s Japanese Grand Prix, it was claimed that Verstappen is ‘seriously considering’ retiring from F1 at the end of the 2026 season. 

The four-time world champion has been left frustrated by the sport’s new regulations, describing them as ‘anti-driving’.

Earlier in the month, further doubts were raised after it was confirmed that Verstappen’s race engineer, Gianpiero Lambiase, would leave Red Bull for McLaren in 2028. 

Jenson Button rules out Max Verstappen taking F1 sabbatical

Amid the uncertainty over Verstappen’s future, 2009 F1 world champion Button was asked to comment on the situation. 

Speaking to Sky Sports F1, Button claimed that he can’t see Verstappen taking a sabbatical away from the sport, stating that he is either racing or he’s not.

Button said: “Personally, it doesn’t feel like he’s the sort of guy that would want to take a sabbatical. For me, he’s racing, or he’s not.

“If he wants to stop, he will go and do something that is fun as well.

“I think we’ll see Max; this will be his last career in Formula 1. I don’t think he will take a year out and come back. I just don’t think that’s the Max I have come to know.”

READ MORE: Jolyon Palmer can see Max Verstappen replacing Charles Leclerc at Ferrari if he leaves Red Bull

Will Max Verstappen follow Gianpiero Lambiase to McLaren?

With Lambiase set to join McLaren as Chief Racing Officer in 2028, Verstappen has unsurprisingly been linked with a move to the Woking-based team.

When quizzed on whether Verstappen could follow Lambiase to McLaren, Button replied: “It’s funny because it’s only a few weeks before it was announced that Lambiase was going to McLaren that Max said ‘I can’t ever imagine racing without Lambiase by my side’.

“But I mean, it is 2028, that’s another two years away. We’ll see, it’s exciting. There is so much to look forward to with the driver market in the next few years.

“Max will always be the centre of attention when it comes to that driver market because he is in a car that is not performing, and we’re used to him being at the front and he’s not.”