Horner 'Certain' That Verstappen Will Remain With Red Bull Until 2028

Saturday, 09 March 2024 at 07:30

Christian Horner asserted he is confident that Max Verstappen will remain with Red Bull Racing at least until the end of his contract in 2028.

Rumors sparked after Jos Verstappen's comments about Christian Horner and discussions with Toto Wolff suggested that the triple World Champion might want to go to Mercedes.

Former F1 driver Gerhard Berger suggested a few days ago that multiple key people in Red Bull planned to leave the team, including the 26-year-old driver, who would then reportedly go to Mercedes.

The Flying Dutchman addressed these speculations ahead of the 2024 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. He clarified he personally had neither reason nor intent to leave the team from Milton Keynes.

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The team principal of the Red Bull Racing F1 team, Christian Horner, was asked during a press conference on Thursday at Jeddah Corniche Circuit whether he expected the triple World Champion to remain with the team until the end of his contract, and he responded:

"I'm certain that he will. I mean, he's got a great team around him, he's got great faith in that team, and we've achieved an awful lot together."

Moreover, as Lewis Hamilton said, he didn't see a reason for Verstappen to leave the Austrian team as long as they provided him with the fastest car on the grid.

The Dutchman had the dominant car in 2022 and 2023, and so far, it looks like he will have the dominant car even in 2024. That means he should have a very good chance of fighting for the Championship, even in 2025.

On the other hand, there are various performance clauses in almost all drivers' contracts, and Verstappen hinted that the situation might change if he wasn't provided with a competitive car. For now, Horner added:

"He's committed to an agreement until 2028, and from a team side, from Max's side, we're determined to build on the success that we've that we've achieved already."