Max Verstappen shares honest stance on career change amid doubts over Red Bull star’s F1 future

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Max Verstappen has now shared his honest stance on a future in rally racing amidst doubts surrounding the Red Bull driver’s future on the Formula 1 grid beyond 2028.

The 26-year-old is under contract in Milton Keynes for the next five seasons after he signed a long-term deal in 2022. But Verstappen has often added fuel to the flames that he could quit Formula 1 when his contract expires. Even though he has secured the past three titles.

Verstappen will chase a fourth successive drivers’ title this year following the most dominant season in F1’s history in 2023. His 19 wins over 22 Grand Prix also moved the Dutchman into third place all-time, behind Lewis Hamilton (103) and Michael Schumacher (54), with 54 yet.

What has Max Verstappen said about his Formula 1 future?

But Verstappen has grown frustrated with Formula 1 in recent years due to the series’ ever-expanding calendar. F1 will embark on a record 24-round schedule in 2024, which will mark the Red Bull driver’s 10th season on the grid. He debuted for Toro Rosso in 2015 at only 17.

Such is the extent of his frustrations that Verstappen told Sky Sports last May that the work required could see him leave Formula 1 after 2028. As well as the growing number of races, much of a driver’s year includes factory visits, simulator work and marketing commitments.

“I like to be competitive and I like to win,” Verstappen noted. “But if you can’t fully motivate yourself to get to every race, then that’s the point you have to question yourself, ‘Do you really want to continue?’”

Red Bull star Max Verstappen rules out a future in the WRC

Verstappen’s contract with Red Bull through the 2028 F1 season also prohibits him from an array of activities. He cannot compete in any extreme sports, for example. But a future as a World Rally Championship entrant does not appeal to the Dutchman once free of the deal.

“I have a clause that prohibits me from engaging in dangerous sports,” Verstappen outlined, via quotes by F1 Insider. “Cycling, for example, isn’t without danger either but at least I’ll put on a helmet.”

But even the expiration of that contract with Red Bull is unlikely to see Verstappen follow his father into the world of rally driving. Jos Verstappen most recently contested the 2022 Ypres Rally Belgium in Citroen’s C3 Rally2 car. It was his debut in the WRC’s support championship.

He added: “I don’t see myself driving through tree landscapes at 180 kilometres per hour.”

Jos Verstappen had only registered four rally starts before taking to the 2022 Ypres Rally in a WRC2 car. It also came only six months after the Dutchman’s rally debut in the Belgian Rally Championship. But the one-time Benetton F1 pilot is unlikely to inspire his son to try it, too.

Max Verstappen might be more likely to pursue options in endurance racing when the time comes to leave Formula 1. He has a keen interest in the world of endurance racing and also won the GTD class in the virtual iRacing Daytona 24 Hours with Team Redline last weekend.