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Four-time Formula 1 World Champion Max Verstappen dropped a big hint about what his not-so-distant future may look like, given the current state of F1 racing. During this weekend’s Japanese Grand Prix, he told the media that he was “not enjoying the whole formula.”
When asked by BBC Sport if that meant he was “going to walk away at the end of the season,” Verstappen responded with: “That’s what I’m saying. I’m thinking about everything inside this paddock.”
This comes as a big shock, as Verstappen is still in his prime and is arguably one of the best, if not the best, active F1 drivers. And while he previously told me during a 2024 interview that he has “no interest in winning eight or nine world championships”—and that he’d rather do endurance racing later on—he’s never actually shared a timeline for when he might drop out of F1.
NurPhoto via Getty
The fact that BBC Sport specified “end of the [’26] season” in its question to Verstappen, and that he did not refute it, is a big deal.
Verstappen, who is managed by two mastermind influencers (not the social media kind), Raymond Vermulen and father Jos, is likely dropping these bits to the media as a way to put pressure on F1, the FIA, and all the teams to amend the 2026 rules. Or, at the very least, come to a sort of consensus to get rid of the “Mario Kart mushroom effect,” as Verstappen and others have come to call the battery harvesting procedures.
F1 would lose a lot of marketability and clout without Verstappen, and the F1 champ knows it. Just like he knows he could take his millions of fans to another series, as well as their wallets and eyeballs (ticket/merch sales, and TV ratings).
Verstappen is the kind of guy who likes to have fun, enjoy life, enjoy his family, and enjoy all the money he’s earned. No one should ever take him or any “threat” of his lightly.
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As deputy editor, Jerry draws on a decade of industry experience and a lifelong passion for motorsports to guide The Drive’s short- and long-term coverage.
