Two-time F1 World Champion Mika Hakkinen believes that Max Verstappen won’t spend the entirety of his career at Red Bull.
The 2022 season has been a walk in the park for Red Bull as a team. Verstappen has already clinched the Drivers’ Title (his second in a row) and they will most likely seal their first Constructors’ Title win since 2013 at next week’s US Grand Prix.
On top of that, Verstappen and Sergio Perez might finish 1-2 this season, which will be a first in Red Bull’s history. Everything at the Milton-Keynes-based outfit seems perfect as of now. Verstappen, who has won two consecutive Titles with them has been with this team for his entire F1 career up until now.
After the 25-year-old won last year’s Championship, he insisted that he wanted to be with Red Bull forever. Former Champion Hakkinen meanwhile, feels that won’t be the case. Verstappen signed a contract earlier this year that will keep him at Red Bull until 2028. Hakkinen feels that this was a very risky move.
Max Verstappen will leave if the car no longer performs
Verstappen won his first-ever F1 race in his Red Bull debut at the age of just 18. In the next few years leading up to his Title win, he spent the majority of time in the shadows of Mercedes and Lewis Hamilton who dominated the sport. He had to be patient and wait for Red Bull to provide him with a car that won him a Championship.
Today, the Dutch driver is a star. He’s already a legend of F1, so it’s highly unlikely he will stay at a weak team according to Hakkinen. This is why the Finn feels that signing a long-term contract was a very risky move on his part.
“There is always the risk that when important people leave the car is no longer performing to the driver’s expectations,” Hakkinen said to Unibet. “At that point, a driver will wonder if it is time to switch teams. I don’t think Max Verstappen will stay with Red Bull for the rest of his career.”
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Verstappen deserved this years Title more than anyone else, claims Hakkinen
Verstappen’s Title defense went off to the worst possible start when technical difficulties forced him to retire his car in two of the opening three races. At that moment, it looked like Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc was the favorite this year.
However, Verstappen completely turned the situation around in the next few races and retook the lead. Ferrari’s mistakes aided Verstappen in extending his lead at the top and after the summer break, the F1-75 couldn’t come close to the RB18’s performance.
Hakkinen took Verstappen’s race win in Japan as an example when he said no one else deserved the Title more than him. His determination and consistency has been superior to any other driver on track this campaign.
