Martin Brundle has put Red Bull on notice: they may yet lose Max Verstappen, not for next year, but for the year after.
Verstappen himself closed the door on a potential departure from Red Bull, and chose to align his fate with that of the Austrian team for the 2026 season.
Next year F1 is premiering a set of regulations that will overhaul the outlook of the sport in unprecedented ways, with active aerodynamics and an equal 50-50 power output split between the electrical components and the internal combustion side of the engine.
Red Bull is set to undertake its first ever season as engine manufacturer. Coupled with their inability to make the best of the current regulations, which they dominated not so long ago.
This also prompts uncertainties regarding their ability to interpret the upcoming chassis and aerodynamic changes successfully.
Speaking to Sky Sports F1, Martin Brundle gave his view on the Dutchman’s future. “But I think what Max will do now is take a view, see what happens,” the former F1 driver said.
Recently, Max Verstappen's foretelling abilities were put to the test. But this time Brundle believes it will be awfully difficult to predict the future.
“The crystal ball has never been more opaque for a Formula One driver because of the changes with the chassis and the power unit for 2026. Who’s going to get it right?
"He knows that there will be a Ferrari seat, at least, a Mercedes seat, a Red Bull seat, and probably an Aston Martin seat available to him for ’27.”
When asked which car was worthy of the current F1 champion’s skill, Brundle observed: “You can’t know which car will be best until they get out on the track.”
Yuki Tsunoda, Verstappen's current teammate, has so far only scored 10 points for Red Bull, once again leaving Verstappen to carry the team single-handedly against the other three top teams. Brundle believes this cannot continue.
“He’s put some laps in, I think I described one of his pole positions as laser-guided.
"It was just a beautiful way he was controlling it. The car’s moving around, Max can handle that, he just changes his driving style a little bit and carries the speed.
“Super brave in Spa, for example, with a skinny downforce taking some of those really critical corners flat out, and he can do it.
"But, you know, you can’t pick a car and carry it for a whole season,”\ Brundle concluded.