Max Verstappen signs new Red Bull contract through 2030
Max Verstappen has signed a new contract with Red Bull Racing that runs until the end of 2030, the team announced at his final home race this weekend before the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort falls off the calendar. The move ends ongoing speculation linking the four-time world champion with potential moves to Mercedes or McLaren.
Verstappen was previously contracted to the end of 2028, with clauses that would have allowed him to leave at the end of the current Formula 1 season had he wished, and his renewal removes that immediate uncertainty. Red Bull have struggled at the start of the season under the new car and engine regulations, and Verstappen's best results so far this year are two second places in the Austrian and Hungarian Grands Prix. Last season he came within two points of beating McLaren's Lando Norris to the world title after mounting a comeback from a deficit of more than 100 points to the championship lead in the second half of the season.
Verstappen, 28, issued a statement as part of the announcement, saying: "We have the best people and I'm excited to keep working together with everyone to get back to the top again. This remains the ultimate goal that all of us have been working towards and will continue to pursue. I have always said it: the team is like a second family for me and I feel very at home. I came to the team hoping to be able to win races. What we went on to achieve together has been simply lovely and we have shared many incredible moments and won four World Championships. To continue this journey with the same team that I have been with my whole career is really special and something I have always wanted to do."
Laurent Mekies, who took over as team principal last July after Christian Horner was sacked following a turbulent 18-month period and a decline in competitiveness, also commented on the renewal. Mekies said: "Having Max continue with us and retaining the best driver on the grid is fantastic news. Very few partnerships in sport achieve what Max and this team have. Since the very beginning, Max has embodied everything that makes Red Bull Racing special: uncompromising competitiveness, relentless determination and the courage to challenge convention. His impact on our team and Red Bull's motorsport story has been transformational and he has been fundamental to everything we have achieved together. The decision to continue our journey together is rooted in the trust Max and the team have built over many years, as well as Max's confidence in our people, our culture and our vision for the future. Forged through championship-winning success, intense battles and challenging moments alike, this relationship has only grown stronger – making it one of Formula 1's greatest success stories. But we are not done yet. There are more races to win, more milestones to achieve and more history to write."
Red Bull's lack of performance this season has prompted visible frustration from Verstappen on several occasions, yet he chose to remain with the team. The decision comes despite his trusted race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase having signed to join McLaren by 2028.
The announcement noted that, while the contract runs to the end of 2030, there remain mechanisms by which Verstappen could leave if performance did not meet expectations; the article states this is standard practice in driver contracts in F1, that the details are not yet known, and that teams do not comment on contractual intricacies.
Verstappen began his Formula 1 career with Red Bull's junior team Toro Rosso in 2015, was promoted to the senior Red Bull team after four races of 2016 and immediately won his first race. He has since won 71 grands prix and four world titles, a tally of victories that the article places third in all-time F1 history after Lewis Hamilton and Michael Schumacher.
The new deal was signed at his final home race this weekend, with Verstappen pictured signing the contract alongside team principal Laurent Mekies before the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort is removed from the calendar.
