Over the last 2 years, Max Verstappen has become the poster boy of F1. He has done so by having the most successful seasons in F1 history by any driver. However, he has often expressed his interest to retire early from the sport and enjoy life with his family.
during the 2023 season, Verstappen broke several records while claiming his 3rd Championship. This has placed him among a list of very few drivers including Lewis Hamilton, Michael Schumacher, and Sebastian Vettel among others.
Max Verstappen says he might not extend his contract with Red Bull
After winning his 1st Championship, Max signed a new contract with Red Bull which sees him driving for the team until the 2028 season. No other driver on the grid has a contract as long as him. By the time his contract expires, he will be 30 years of age. F1 drivers usually retire much later in their careers. However, when Max was asked if a decline in the quality of racing in 2026 could allow him not to extend his contract, he said yes.
Max Verstappen has already won 3 Championships and does not have anything to prove to anyone. Hence, if he feels that the quality of racing is declining, he will have nothing to lose by not extending his contract. He has already developed a net worth of over 200 million and could happily call it a career.
Max Verstappen on if a drastic decline in racing quality with the 2026 regs could lead him to not extending his F1 contract:
“Yes, possibly.”
[@MSM_Online] pic.twitter.com/bDc7ghZnKj
— RBR Daily (@RBR_Daily) December 18, 2023
Over the last decade, F1 cars have become bigger, slower, and more complicated to drive. With the increased amount of downforce and the amount of dirty air coming out of the back of the car, it has also become very difficult to follow a car from behind. This makes it very difficult for drivers to overtake. This has decreased the quality of racing for the drivers.
Most of these changes that have decreased the quality of racing were made to increase safety for the drivers. However, F1 and the FIA have been trying to bring back the quality of racing without decreasing the safety of the car. Bringing in the DRS was a very smart move taken by the FIA to make it easier to overtake.
In 2022, the FIA made some changes that were supposed to make it easier for the drivers to overtake. The drivers have pointed out that it has become slightly better, but still difficult to follow. However, we did see quite a lot of overtakes in the last 2 seasons.
How will the 2026 regulation changes affect the F1 cars?
According to the FIA’s report, the new regulation changes for 2026 should make the car better for racing conditions. One of the main aspects to increase the quality of racing is overtakes. Or else, the drivers and the fans will witness quite a boring race.
It has been revealed that the size and weight of the cars will reduce in 2026 to make it easier to drive and overtake in street circuits such as Monaco. There will also be some significant changes made to the power unit of the car.
Max Verstappen is still concerned about the quality of racing in the 2026 F1 Regulations
“I don’t think we’re stupid. We’ll find out how good it will be. It’s still not particularly exciting at the moment.”
[@MSM_Online] pic.twitter.com/0SfTvQOkq3
— RBR Daily (@RBR_Daily) December 18, 2023
The power coming from the hybrid unit is expected to increase enormously in 2026. Some even say that the engines will be louder than the current ones. This should make F1 more entertaining for the fans and the drivers.
If these changes take place as expected, we can expect the quality of racing to increase in 2026. However, there is a possibility that these changes have the opposite effect on the cars. In the case that this happens, we can expect the FIA to make additional changes for the following season.