Max Verstappen warned why F1 retirement talk will ‘work against him’ at Red Bull

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Max Verstappen has now been warned that constantly claiming he may retire from F1 in 2026 due to his hatred of the regulations will risk demoralising Red Bull’s engineers.

The 28-year-old threw his toys out of the pram throughout a disappointing weekend for Red Bull at the Japanese Grand Prix last time out. Verstappen started the Suzuka affair by kicking a journalist out of his pre-event press conference, before he derided the rules and the RB22.

Verstappen called the Red Bull RB22 “undriveable” after qualifying in Japan, having failed to reach a Q3 session at Suzuka for the first time since 2015. The Dutchman then raised doubts over his time on the grid, as Verstappen declared that he has to “figure out” his future in F1.

After finishing the Japanese GP in P8, having failed to overtake Alpine’s Pierre Gasly, the Red Bull racer even doubled down on his threats to retire at the end of 2026. The 71-time Grand Prix winner said he must decide “is it worth it?” to stay, given he hates the new engine rules.

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Max Verstappen risks demoralising Red Bull’s engineers by threatening to retire from F1

But former BMW and Ferrari F1 engineer Ernest Knoors fears Verstappen threatening to use the release clause in his Red Bull contract to retire this year risks demoralising the engineers in Milton Keynes. No matter how frustrated Verstappen may be, he has to keep them happy.

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“You are part of a team,” Knoors told RacingNews365. “Max is part of the Red Bull team. I understand Max’s personal frustration very well, that this is not his style of racing.

“But you are also a team leader. You are the one who converts the hard work of a thousand men and women into results every weekend.

“I understand that frustration is involved, but ultimately, you want those thousand people to do their best. And do you achieve that by saying every weekend, ‘I don’t feel like doing this, and it’s not fun?’

“I think that will work against him at some point, and he needs to be a bit careful with that. As the figurehead of Red Bull, you have to ensure that your team is motivated and working in the right direction.”

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Verstappen will have from August to October to use his release clause, which hinges on him ranking outside the top two in the F1 drivers’ standings at the summer break. It is very likely that the 48-time polesitter will get the right to walk away from Red Bull if he decides to, too.

The early-season form of Mercedes, and to a lesser extent Ferrari, will likely see Verstappen struggle to break into the title race by the summer break. Also, it is said that Red Bull do not have the money to improve the RB22 without them using funds reserved for their 2027 car.

It has also been reported that Red Bull are already discussing abandoning the RB22, as they no longer trust the project after seeing Verstappen and Isack Hadjar struggle over the early rounds. The RB22 has atrocious balance problems that further worsen Verstappen’s mood.