Will he be leaving Red Bull soon?
Max Verstappen’s release clause revealed
01/14/2026Reading time: 2 minutes
The Dutchman Max Verstappen is the face of Red Bull. But the future of the Formula 1 superstar at the Austrian racing team is not as clear as expected.
Max Verstappen apparently has an exit clause in his contract with Red Bull, which runs until 2028. As “Sport Bild” reports, the four-time Formula 1 world champion can leave the racing team at the end of the year – depending on his position in the world championship standings in the middle of the season. Specifically, this means: Verstappen can unilaterally terminate the contract if he is not at least in second place in the Drivers’ World Championship by the summer break at the end of July. There would be no transfer fee.
The clause should be even easier to activate in the following year. If Verstappen is not at the top of the World Cup table at the same time in 2027, a farewell at the end of the season would also be possible. Red Bull could not intervene in this case.
Dr. Helmut Marko made the contract drafting possible. The team’s long-time motorsport consultant was significantly involved in the negotiations and agreed to the special regulations. At the same time, he ensured that Verstappen became the highest-paid driver in Formula 1 with a rumored annual salary of around 65 million euros.
So will Verstappen leave the company soon? According to the report, hardly anyone internally at Red Bull believes in this. Sports boss Oliver Mintzlaff confirmed in October: “Max knows what he has in us. It wasn’t just Red Bull that gave him the chance in Formula 1, but we also won four world championship titles together. Something like that connects us.” And further: “He owes us as much as we owe him. That’s why I’m not worried that he might leave us.”
