Red Bull make Helmut Marko contract change that could now impact Max Verstappen’s future

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Max Verstappen’s future at Red Bull is one of the many storylines bubbling under the surface in the world of Formula 1 this season.

Despite Max Verstappen being the reigning world champion and on course to potentially win a fourth straight title, his future remains a key talking point.

Red Bull haven’t had the most straightforward campaign despite leading both championships at this stage of the year.

Adrian Newey will be moving on at the beginning of 2025 and Sergio Perez is under immense pressure in the other car.

As a result, Toto Wolff has explored signing Max Verstappen as his replacement for Lewis Hamilton before his move to Ferrari in 2025.

However, the prospect of that happening looks less and less likely due to a deal signed by another key member of Red Bull personnel.

A report from the Dutch outlet De Telegraaf has shared more details about a new contract signed by chief advisor Helmut Marko.

Marko hasn’t seen eye-to-eye with Christian Horner for some time but is a key ally of Max Verstappen and his father Jos.

It seems as though he’s been willing to put those differences aside by signing a contract extension that will also have an impact on Verstappen’s immediate future.

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Helmut Marko signs Red Bull contract extension that impacts Max Verstappen’s future

The report from De Telegraaf suggests that Red Bull’s top advisor has signed a new deal with the team that takes him to the end of the 2026 season.

While Max Verstappen’s current deal doesn’t technically expire until the end of 2028, there are plenty of get-out clauses for both parties that could see their relationship end sooner than that.

One of the clauses is that Verstappen could leave Red Bull early if Marko departs.

However, another amendment made to Marko’s contract will also impact Verstappen.

It’s now been said that if Marko wants to leave his new deal early, i.e. before the end of the 2026 season, Verstappen can no longer follow him.

This would be a huge boost to Red Bull as Marko’s exit does seem like one of the easiest ways for Verstappen to move on.

The 26-year-old isn’t expected to join Mercedes in 2025 despite the team still having an open seat for next season.

It means that while Wolff will probably continue to court the triple-world champion publicly, he’ll probably know that the chances of him being George Russell’s teammate next year are virtually zero.

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Helmut Marko has key driver decisions to make after signing a contract extension

Red Bull will be delighted that a potential exit route for Verstappen has now been closed off, but they still have plenty of work to do between their two F1 teams.

Sergio Perez’s crash during qualifying at the Hungarian Grand Prix further shines a light on his F1 future.

Liam Lawson has been touted as Perez’s potential replacement during the summer break with the Mexican potentially having just two races left to save his seat.

Yuki Tsunoda has already signed a contract for next year although Tsunoda believes he should be the man called up to Red Bull if Perez departs.

Daniel Ricciardo is also fighting for his future at RB after a decent but unspectacular campaign.

Marko is a fan of F2 championship leader Isack Hadjar and if a pair of Red Bull drivers end up departing at the end of the season then he would be next in line for an F1 call-up.