I think Mateschitz pockets are even deeper. Even if Ferrari offered a ludicrous 100 million, it won't make an ounce of difference to his life...He has the luxury to say no. IMO Verstappen makes him a ****-ton of money anyhow, the Red Bull is in shot so often due to the excitement he provides. More TV time = more revenue. IMO we'll see Verstappen at Ferrari in 2019 at earliest. If a deal will be made it would likely be the following: Ferrari retain Kimi for 1 more season, with Verstappen signing an option contract with Ferrari for 2019. So if the 2018 Red Bull is **** he'll jump to Ferrari. I can't see Ferrari getting Ricciardo for only a year, Ricci won't go for that. If they'll get Ricciardo it'll be a 3 year contract minimum, and Vertappen won't join until 2021 at the very least.
I think the deciding factor here is not the teams and their contracts, but Max himself. We can reasonably argue that money at either RB or Ferrari is unlikely to be the deciding issue. If Max wants to be in Red, then that's the way it will be. No team wants a demotivated driver under performing in a car they don't want to be in. I expect Ferrari are already working on max and putting in place plans to sign him if Vet jumps to Merc.
Vettel won't jump. Why go from #1 to shared #1 with Elton? Unless he suddenly leaves, but he's got a contract till end 2018. Makes no sense. Ferrari has a great car, it's not like Merc has a much faster car. Verstappen obviously wants to win titles, too. IMO Red Bull is still a good place to be at. Contracts can rule, still...remember Button in 2005 (?), signed for Williams but Honda retained him...worked out well in the end, but still. With the amount of money Mateschitz has, he's not going to let his star go. I don't think Verstappen is desperately unhappy at Red Bull. A new car is on the way, if that chassis/aero works they just need Renault to pull their finger out.
Agreed. But let's not forget - RB have often threatened to quit F1. What happens if the new RB under performs and RB pull the plug? Where does Max go then? Either way, right now there are too many unknowns. Hence, I would expect all the top drivers to be in early talks to work out their options. I suspect the catalyst to trigger all the moves will be Mercs decisions on drivers for 2018. Once that is sorted, the other dominos will fall into place.
I wouldn't really worry about Red Bull leaving F1 so quickly. Concorde till 2020, 2 big sets of fines to pay (2 teams remember), the millions they've invested in younger drivers...all gone. It's a money making venture for them, I don't see them leaving at all. You are right that Merc are the big catalyst in all this...IMO Bottas has proven he's the right man for the job, certainly keeping Hamilton on his toes. I really can see Hamilton leave F1, and I don't see Mercedes NOT retaining Bottas. IF Hamilton leaves, one of the Red Bull boys will head to Mercedes, and in all honesty it has to be Ricciardo then as he'll be far cheaper. Sainz will move up to RBR and Gasly will be in at STR.
Unfortunately I feel Ricci to Ferrari is the only way Ricci can beat Max to a WDC. The teen has that something extra. If RB picks up some slack, Max could still mix it at the front despite a slight car performance deficit. Max has the bandwidth to drive around some problems, unlike Lewis.
+1 I'd be extremely happy with Ricci at Ferrari and Verstappen (competitive) at Red Bull...I'm a big fan of both drivers and as ever when a title is involved between teammates, things will get heated. I'd not like to see that happen between those two. Ideally Ricci at Mercedes, Vettel and Ferrari and Verstappen at Red Bull, all in equal cars.
MAY 18, 2017 Marko confirms official role for Jos Verstappen Dr Helmut Marko has confirmed reports that Max Verstappen's father is taking on an official Red Bull role. Earlier, we reported that former F1 driver Jos Verstappen, whose teenage son now drives for Red Bull Racing, was considering taking up a role as a sort of young talent scout for the energy drink company. Marko, who runs Red Bull's driver programme, confirmed: "This is a good cooperation and expansion of the Red Bull junior team." The Austrian said 45-year-old Verstappen, who oversaw his 19-year-old son Max's meteoric rise to F1, will help Red Bull as it looks for the next talents of the future. "It is a question of time, as there are clashes with junior races so that I cannot see them," said Marko, who attends all the grands prix. "So we asked if he has the time and the inclination to visit certain races for us," he said, revealing that Verstappen's first assignment is the F3 race in Pau this weekend. But Marko said Jos' scope will go beyond that as well. "Jos was always closely involved in karting," he said. "He can not only coach the drivers with his experience, but also look at the teams. "The success in the development phase that he managed with Max is obvious," Marko said.
They are sooo desperate to hold on to Max ,they will probably give his mum and sister something to do too They know of course that if Max decides he wants to go to Ferrari there is very little they do to stop it ...yes they can try to keep him driving for them as per the contract ,then it takes just one lacklustre qualifying or even a race to ruin that strategy. They would drop Kimi like a stone if they thought they could sign Max. I like and rate Kimi but Max has the potential to take the whole thing to a different level ...not too sure in Seb would be happy though!
Red Bull is a drinks company, perhaps Jos will be in charge of drinking? Seriously this is just another method to ensure that Max stays at Red Bull for years to come.
Was thinking this morning, had Verstappen taken the Mercedes offer, would he be in Bottas' seat today? IIRC Verstappen signed with Red Bull as they offered an actual F1 seat immediately, something Mercedes wouldn't do. Presumably 2016 would've been Max's 1st F1 season, and in the Manor then I assume. Mercedes might be playing a little too safe, and I reckon Max would be either in Ocon's seat or Williams, they wouldn't have bumped him up to the big boy seat. By my reckoning, a good decision
It will be a good decision if Red Bull get a better car going......they are suffering with the motor situation.
Yep, their update worked reasonably well I reckon, qualifying was close (6 tenths for Max, on a tire the Red Bull wasn't comfortable on at all), and I doubt Ricciardo was even remotely attempting to give chase to the leading 3 as there wasn't a hope in hell he'd actually catch any of them, so with an engine turned down doesn't give us the full picture (the 50 seconds at the finish) against 2 guys that where racing each other the entire race. IMO it IS a lost year, apparently Newey is now going to spend more time on the F1 car again...presumably the 2018 car. The engine upgrade might allow them for a few more podiums but it'll be pointless focusing on trying to win races and go for a title this season.
I can see next year, provided they'll start work on that car (and full attention) very soon...Mercedes/Ferrari will be busy with their own war till the end of the season so will be behind in developing their 2018 cars. This year, unless Merc and Ferrari are both running illegal cars, it's not happening.
MAY 30, 2017 Horner forgives Verstappen for outburst Christian Horner says Red Bull's relationship with Max Verstappen remains on track. That is despite the fact the Dutchman made a foul-mouthed radio riposte during the Monaco race, when a pit strategy gave his teammate Daniel Ricciardo the track advantage. Asked if he understood the outburst, boss Horner told Auto Hebdo: "Of course. "When you end up with your teammate in front of you when he was behind you, you can be angry. "But once the circumstances were explained, everything was in order," he added. Also angry after Monaco was Kimi Raikkonen, amid suspicions Ferrari deliberately disadvantaged the Finn so that teammate Sebastian Vettel could win. "I don't think Ferrari did anything deliberately," Red Bull's Dr Helmut Marko told Auto Bild. "He had to react to us and Bottas because he was just too slow. We also had to pit Max early," he added. Ricciardo was on the podium in Monaco ahead of both Mercedes, but Horner says that does not mean Red Bull's 2017 troubles are now effectively over. "I am worried about Montreal, Baku and Spielberg," he said. "They will be the biggest challenges along with Monza. "If we manage to do well on those three tracks, what we have in the pipeline should enable us to have a much better second half of the season."
Horner had no choice, he knows full well that if the car does not get a lot better ,and soon,young Maxie will be on his way out to Ferrari,to replace Kimi.
JUNE 27, 2017 Verstappen faces fine for skipping media duties Max Verstappen is facing a EUR 25,000 fine for skipping his mandatory press duties after Sunday's race in Baku. Openly unhappy about his recent troubles at Red Bull, the Dutchman left the Azerbaijan street circuit after the race without talking to the media. De Telegraaf newspaper claims Verstappen could face a hefty fine as a result. "I did not want to talk to the press at the time," the 19-year-old told Dutch broadcaster Ziggo Sport Totaal. "It seemed wise not to respond right away. In the race I was in such a good position and the team expects me to do my best, so I expect the same from the team." Asked what the problem was, Verstappen said: "The problem is that Renault is the only engine that doesn't work. But that's separate." He said he has both Monday and Tuesday away from the team and is then due to be on the simulator on Wednesday. "The big advantage is that the engine cannot break," Verstappen said. As for whether he stuck around in Baku to help his teammate Daniel Ricciardo celebrate a surprise victory, Verstappen answered: "What do you think?"
Don't blame him for it. Spain: Hit by Raikkonen (due to Bottas). Lost out on a podium (which Ricci got) Monaco: Strategy call from Red Bull didn't work out, lost out on 3rd place (which Ricci got) Canada: Complete car failure from a very comfortable 2nd place. Ricciardo was 4th and inherited a 3rd place Baku: Crazy race, Max was taking Perez the next lap for 3rd with ease, another engine failure...Ricciardo, who was 17th or something at the time, managed to win. 4 podiums out of which 1 would've been a win thrown away none through his own fault. I'd be pissed too.
I mentioned something in the other thread, does anyone think verstappen is too hard on his cars? He's pushing flat out all the time. It could just be crap luck but maybe his aggressive nature, his contact with other drivers, his crashes, etc could be doing a number on his cars. He's fast and his one lap speed and racecraft are impressive, but ricciardo is more consistent almost as fast and hasn't had the problems. Maybe he knows how to get the most out of the car without damaging anything? I'd like to see some engine telemetry on max's car to see if he has any over revs or damaging driving
