Jeroen Bleekemolen suggests Max Verstappen scenario that could see Red Bull quit Formula 1

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Max Verstappen might be on course to take his fourth Drivers’ Championship with Red Bull in 2024, but things are far from straightforward for the Dutchman.

Although he has a 52-point lead over Lando Norris heading into the final six races of the season, Verstappen has not won a race since the Spanish Grand Prix in June.

Even though he has regularly scored podiums, the consistency of Norris and Oscar Piastri has led to his advantage slowly slipping away as Red Bull struggles to get on top of their problems with the RB20.

Verstappen has been vocal about realising ‘early on’ that the RB20 would be ‘very difficult’ to drive this season, with Red Bull now fighting a problem on their car that was not present at the beginning of the season.

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The team was engulfed in a scandal at the start of the season involving team principal Christian Horner and had to deal with the departures of key people in their success circle including Adrian Newey.

According to racing driver Bleekemolen, there is a scenario that could potentially happen that might see Red Bull decide to pull out of F1 altogether when speaking on the FORMULE 1 podcast.

Max Verstappen leaving Red Bull could see them pull out of F1 altogether

It is no secret that the internal politics at Red Bull have been heavily influenced by the passing of founder Dietrich Mateschitz, with the Austrian arm of the company fighting with the Thai-arm over certain issues.

Managing director, Oliver Mintzlaff, is reportedly in favour of scaling back their involvement in F1 to just being a title-sponsor, but they will now become a power unit manufacturer in 2026.

With Verstappen likely looking at other options due to their downturn this season, the Dutchman also stated that he could quit in future following the swearing row that erupted during the Singapore GP weekend. Bleekemolen believes this could have a profound impact on their position in the championship going forward.

“Maybe it is the end of Red Bull in F1. Not that they will pull out of the championship now, but there is so much going on with the shares, with Helmut Marko who is getting older, and if everything falls apart and Verstappen leaves, winning will be a lot less,” said Bleekemolen.

“You don’t want to be second or in the midfield with four cars, and Red Bull isn’t a company that wants to finish second, so they could just decide to focus on another sport and leave F1.”

Helmut Marko exposes ‘factor’ that is hurting Red Bull in title fight with McLaren

The inconsistency of Sergio Perez has been a big problem for Red Bull this season and cost them vital points in the Constructors’ Championship.

Perez sits eighth in the standings and is 187 points behind Verstappen, which puts the Mexican in breach of his agreement with Red Bull.

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Helmut Marko believes McLaren’s strong driver lineup is the main ‘factor’ which is hurting Red Bull, due to their consistency finishing on the podium and scoring the most points of any team.

Former F1 driver Jacques Villeneuve has warned that Perez must equal Verstappen in the final six races if he wants to ensure that he keeps his race seat, while he is under threat from future prospect Liam Lawson.