[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content”][et_pb_text module_class=”article-title” _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” header_font=”|800|||||||” header_text_align=”center” header_font_size=”44px” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n
[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text module_class=”fp-byline” _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” text_orientation=”center” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n
Words<\/b><\/span> Curtis Moldrich [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/flatplan-plus-content.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2025\/07\/01-Verstappen-Snr-Horner-Verstappen-Jnr.jpg” title_text=”F1 Grand Prix of Brazil – Sprint & Qualifying” align=”center” _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content” sticky_enabled=”0″][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n Max Verstappen cuts a relaxed, if not exhausted, figure on the eve of the British GP weekend. Red Bull cap on, chatting to me in a glassy open space high in the team\u2019s Energy Station hospitality unit, the Dutchman is mentally braced for a tough weekend.<\/p>\n Last year he was batting away questions about the departure of Adrian Newey or his revolving door of team-mates. Today we\u2019re asking him about rumours of a sensational move to Mercedes in 2026. And days later, Christian Horner, Red Bull\u2019s long-standing team principal, will be sacked.<\/p>\n Gone mid-week, mid-season with immediate effect \u2013 much like the drivers he\u2019s employed for the last two decades, Horner’s sacking is the latest and biggest of Red Bull\u2019s various unravellings. It follows the departures of ex-sporting director James Wheatley (to Sauber and soon Audi) as well as ex-designer Adrian Newey to Aston Martin.\u202f<\/p>\n Like so many things in F1, his position appeared to be at a permanent tipping point, with business as usual in public and rumoured disquiet behind closed doors. And it\u2019s very possible Verstappen knows of this upcoming bomb when he sits down with me ahead of Silverstone.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/flatplan-plus-content.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2025\/07\/02-racing-dry.jpg” title_text=”F1 Grand Prix of Great Britain” align=”center” _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content” sticky_enabled=”0″][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n For most drivers, all of this would be a distraction. For Verstappen, it\u2019s background noise. Come Saturday, he puts his RB21 on pole \u2013 ahead of British crowd favourites Norris, Hamilton and Russell. It’s a familiar narrative. Max under pressure, Max performing. It\u2019s the kind of display that demands respect.<\/p>\n \u2018It\u2019s just instinct,\u2019 Verstappen tells me, recalling his move on Oscar Piastri at Imola. \u2018You see the moment evolve and it’s just like a split second \u2013 okay, I’m doing it.\u2019<\/p>\n For Verstappen, instinct and decision-making are one and the same. \u2018It\u2019s very hard to explain,\u2019 he shrugs. \u2018Experience comes into play\u2026 You trust yourself to make the right call \u2013 if it’s possible or not.\u2019 For Max, it usually is.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text module_class=”car-pullquote-notac” _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” text_font=”|800|||||||” text_font_size=”22px” text_orientation=”center” custom_margin=”||5px||false|false” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n Both are once-in-a-generation talents, both partly the product of a father\u2019s ambition \u2013 but off-track they couldn\u2019t be more different<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n Since his debut win in Barcelona in 2016, Verstappen has carved out a fearsome reputation \u2013 the heir to Vettel, the man who controversially dethroned Hamilton in 2021. But from a charge through the field in Spa 2022 to a wet-weather masterclass in Brazil 2024, his career glitters now with legendary drives. No wonder Toto Wolff wants him in a Silver Arrow.<\/p>\n \u2018The pressure was on. I had to perform, I had to try and not lose points,\u2019 he says, recalling Interlagos 2024. Starting P17, compared to championship rival Norris starting first, Verstappen had it all to do. \u2018I knew that it was going to be a tough race, but we got locked in,\u2019 he tells me.<\/p>\n Comparisons with his rival Hamilton are always inevitable. Both are once-in-a-generation talents, both partly the product of a father\u2019s ambition \u2013 but off-track they couldn\u2019t be more different. Hamilton is a global icon in fashion and sport, fluent in celebrity culture and philanthropy. Max? He\u2019s happiest behind the wheel \u2013 likely clad in Red Bull merch.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/flatplan-plus-content.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2025\/07\/03-Horner.jpg” title_text=”F1 Grand Prix of Great Britain” align=”center” _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content” sticky_enabled=”0″][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n \u2018It was really nice, to get out there finally in real life,\u2019 Verstappen tells me of his recent visit to the N\u00fcrburgring. Involving 73 corners packed with high-speed jeopardy, it\u2019s among the ultimate tests for a driver \u2013 so naturally Max had to give it a go.<\/p>\n \u2018I’ve done thousands of laps on the simulator around there,\u2019 he continues, now more animated. \u2018It was great to get out there with the GT3 car and have some fun.\u2019<\/p>\n But what makes a four-time world champion log laps on a sim rig? \u2018It\u2019s competition,\u2019 he shrugs. \u2018You\u2019re racing others, constantly trying to improve. You work on set-up, look at data, go through strategy. You\u2019re defending, overtaking, doing pitstops.\u2019 Competition for work and leisure \u2013 the ultimate F1 driver mindset.<\/p>\n These feel like the words of a motorsport fan \u2013 not the words of a four-time world champion. But Max is both. He\u2019s interested in competing in other motorsports, but they\u2019ll have to wait until after F1. \u2018I would like to do it, but it\u2019s a little bit too difficult to combine with F1. Let’s see in the future if it\u2019s possible.\u2019<\/p>\n Back to 2025, though, and Max is having a tough time. The RB21 is the first Red Bull not designed by Adrian Newey in years \u2013 and it shows. The car isn\u2019t on the same level as McLaren\u2019s, and a week earlier in Austria he\u2019s taken out by teenage prodigy Kimi Antonelli.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/flatplan-plus-content.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2025\/07\/04-racing-wet.jpg” title_text=”F1 Grand Prix of Great Britain” align=”center” _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content” sticky_enabled=”0″][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n \u2018Every driver has had a moment where they\u2019ve locked up or misjudged the situation,\u2019 Max says calmly. He smiles. \u2018Life goes on \u2013 and I try not to make too much of a scene out of it. We get on very well. First of all, he’s a great kid. But also, mistakes happen.\u2019<\/p>\n It\u2019s hard not to see a bit of Max in Antonelli \u2013 a teen hailed as the future, dropped into F1 with all the weight of expectation. Maybe Max is mellowing. Or maybe he\u2019s the only one who truly understands Antonelli\u2019s world.<\/p>\n Four titles later, Max is in a different space. \u2018I’ve got nothing to prove,\u2019 he shrugs, \u2018I just want to keep winning. Actually, I want to win more \u2013 but there\u2019s not another goal I\u2019m chasing. I just want to do the same thing.\u2019<\/p>\n But where will that be? Max knows only too well how much needs to go right to win. With Red Bull losing talent and performance, speculation over his next move will only intensify with Horner\u2019s departure.<\/p>\n Verstappen seemed to feel resigned about the 2025 championship at the British GP, and his race was particularly challenging. \u2018It won\u2019t be hard to do better than last week,\u2019 he joked with me, referring to his DNF in Austria the previous weekend. \u2018Our car normally is good in the very high speed, so there are a few corners I think that we\u2019ll be okay,\u2019 he said on the Thursday. \u2018But there are some low-speed corners where we have been struggling,\u2019 he warned.<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/flatplan-plus-content.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/8\/2025\/07\/05-walking.jpg” title_text=”F1 Grand Prix of Great Britain – Qualifying” align=”center” _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content” sticky_enabled=”0″][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.20.4″ _module_preset=”default” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” theme_builder_area=”post_content” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n Forced to gamble on car set-up, even one of F1\u2019s rainmasters was unable to make the difference on race day. So tricky was the Red Bull that the Dutchman made an unusual mistake on the safety-car restart \u2013 and seemed to be wrestling the RB21 the whole afternoon.\u202f<\/p>\n It went against a narrative that\u2019s developed throughout the last two years, with the four-time world champion unable to jam his car into a position it has no right to be. The performance gap between the Red Bull and Mclaren is now so large that even Verstappen can\u2019t make the difference in the rain. With that in mind, the Silverstone race felt like a watershed of sorts \u2013 the Verstappen equivalent of Singapore 2012. It\u2019s likely been the catalyst for something.<\/p>\n Horner\u2019s departure could mean two things: it could either be a sign of Red Bull guaranteeing Max Verstappen\u2019s continuing services, or it could precede the Dutchman\u2019s move to Mercedes.\u202f<\/p>\n Jos Verstappen, Max’s father, has made no secret of his low regard for Horner and has said numerous times that the team would ultimately fall apart if Horner remained at the helm. Perhaps interest from Mercedes \u2013 as well as an uncharacteristically uncompetitive Red Bull \u2013 has made Verstappen senior\u2019s argument that bit stronger.\u202f<\/p>\n Of course, Horner\u2019s departure could also be the result of a failure to keep Verstappen \u2013 and even Wheatley and Newey to an extent. Horner\u2019s ability to assemble and retain F1\u2019s best talent had been one his strong suits. If Max Verstappen has already said he’s departing, that would have deprived Horner of a major gambling chip. So much in F1 goes on behind the scenes, and not all of it becomes public knowledge; there’s still plenty more to this story.<\/p>\n Before we wrap, I ask about Tag Heuer \u2013 the Red Bull partner that facilitated this chat. It\u2019s now the official timekeeper of Formula 1.<\/p>\n \u2018What I really enjoyed was going to Switzerland and seeing how they make the watches,\u2019 says Max, now in a slightly more media-trained tone, being the seasoned pro.<\/p>\n In 2025 F1 comes with more scrutiny, more questions and more stress than ever before. But strip away big-money deals, the Drive to Survive drama and the dysfunctional team, and Max is one of the greatest to ever sit behind a wheel.<\/p>\n While he talks about the personalised Monaco he\u2019s wearing, I can\u2019t help but think of something else he said earlier: \u2018I just enjoy the driving part, it\u2019s what I grew up wanting to do. I know that with F1 growing, some other bits come with it, so you must accept that. But my joy still comes from sitting in the car, and just getting the most out of it.\u2019<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Last year he was batting away questions about the departure of Adrian Newey or his revolving door of team-mates. Today we\u2019re asking him about rumours of a sensational move to Mercedes in 2026.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":2339,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2333","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-feature"],"acf":[],"modified_by":"kschwarz","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/flatplanplus.io\/car\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2333","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/flatplanplus.io\/car\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/flatplanplus.io\/car\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flatplanplus.io\/car\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/14"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flatplanplus.io\/car\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2333"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/flatplanplus.io\/car\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2333\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2343,"href":"https:\/\/flatplanplus.io\/car\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2333\/revisions\/2343"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flatplanplus.io\/car\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2339"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/flatplanplus.io\/car\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2333"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flatplanplus.io\/car\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2333"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flatplanplus.io\/car\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2333"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
<\/span>Photography<\/b><\/span> Red Bull<\/span><\/p>\n