Written by Jiya Mahapatra, Edited by Debargha Banerjee
Throughout the course of the Singapore Grand Prix weekend, Max Verstappen made allusions towards his future in Formula 1, expressing his discontent towards the way that the sport is currently being run.
The Dutchman was penalised by the FIA for use of vulgar language in the press conference ahead of the race in Singapore, for which he was obligated to complete the FIA’s form of community service.
However, this decision infuriated Max, and he retaliated by giving brief, one-word answers in the next FIA media conference, before agreeing to speak to journalists outside of the FIA-managed room. But could this punishment truly expedite Verstappen’s retirement from F1? The statements he has made seem to suggest it’s likelihood.
Following the race in Marina Bay, when asked about his view on the FIA’s decision, Verstappen stated that “These things definitely decide my future as well.” and continued by explaining he feels as though he’s “at the stage of my career that you don’t want to be dealing with this all the time.”
He then went on to add that “Of course it’s great to have success and win races, but once you’ve accomplished all that, then you just want to have a good time as well.”
Verstappen summarised his thoughts by saying “If you have to deal with all these kinds of silly things, for me, that is not a way of continuing in the sport, that’s for sure.”
Verstappen is recognised as one of the most talented drivers the sport has ever seen, and being just 27, it seems surprising for someone of his calibre to be discussing retirement so soon. He has achieved more in this sport than most drivers can dream of but it definitely seems odd to be discussing retirement at such an early age, especially when you have drivers like Fernando Alonso still on the grid.
FIA ruling aside, there are other factors that could be driving Verstappen out of the sport, including the ongoing disputes between his father and Red Bull team principal Christian Horner.
Jos Verstappen has often given harsh critiques of Horner, saying that the team “should take a good look in the mirror”, and as far as saying that Christian Horner’s management is going to “tear the team apart”.
Verstappen Sr. is clearly unhappy with the way things at Red Bull are being run, and these conflicts could cause problems for his son within the team as well.
Verstappen has also expressed distaste for F1’s new additions of sprint races to the race calendar, as well as for the general way that F1 has transformed from being a professional sport to more of a spectacle.
The Dutchman has described how he prefers to focus on the actual racing side of the sport, and believes that things like celebrity appearances and concerts at the Grand Prix will diminish that.
Is Verstappen actually close to retirement? No one is sure at the moment, but all of these factors could be driving reasons for why Red Bull’s sensation could be leaving the sport earlier than expected. This would cause a huge shift within the dynamics of Red Bull, as the team currently seems to be designed around him.
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