News Summary
- Max Verstappen says he would stop racing in Formula 1 if he no longer believed he was the best driver on the grid.
- The four-time champion maintains his confidence despite losing the 2025 and 2026 title battles.
- Verstappen has scored 116 points in the last five races, helping Red Bull recover from a difficult start to the season.
Max Verstappen has revealed that he would leave Formula 1 if he stopped believing he was the best driver on the grid, insisting that his confidence remains unchanged despite missing out on the world championship for two consecutive seasons.
The Red Bull driver was questioned by Dutch journalists during the São Paulo Grand Prix weekend about whether he still considers himself Formula 1’s leading driver, even after Lando Norris won the 2025 championship and Andrea Kimi Antonelli secured the 2026 title with Mercedes.
“I always think so. Otherwise, I’d stop!” Verstappen replied.
The four-time world champion explained that the same conviction has shaped his approach since his Formula 1 debut in 2015, when he joined Toro Rosso at just 17 years old. Although he recognised that he still had much to learn, he already believed he possessed the potential to become the best.
Verstappen separates personal performance from Red Bull’s results
Verstappen’s comments come after a season in which Red Bull initially struggled to compete with Mercedes, whose early dominance allowed Antonelli to establish a commanding championship advantage.
The Dutchman nevertheless remains satisfied with his own performances. He believes the team’s recent recovery has demonstrated how much results depend on the competitiveness of the car rather than driver ability alone.
“I think I’ve just had a good season,” Verstappen said, explaining that Formula 1 drivers remain dependent on their machinery.
Red Bull has improved considerably since the opening rounds. Verstappen won in Malaysia, Singapore and Mexico before recovering from 21st on the grid to finish second at Interlagos.
That result strengthened his position in the fight for second place in the championship, where he leads George Russell by 17 points with three Grands Prix remaining.
The turnaround is supported by GRANDE PRÊMIO’s analysis of the first 20 races, which revealed that Verstappen scored 116 points across the latest five rounds, more than any other driver.
Red Bull also increased its team total from 57 points in the opening five races to 152 in the most recent period, overtaking Mercedes in recent points scored.
Retirement was a genuine consideration earlier in 2026
Verstappen’s latest comments should not be confused with his previous doubts about continuing in Formula 1.
Earlier this year, the Dutchman admitted that he had seriously considered retirement because of his dissatisfaction with the championship’s technical regulations.
He eventually committed his future to Red Bull through 2030 after discussions with team principal Laurent Mekies and representatives of Formula 1 and the FIA.
As Verstappen explained when discussing his decision to remain with Red Bull, leaving the championship had appeared more likely than joining another team.
His latest remarks concern a different issue: the confidence required to continue competing at the highest level.
They do not amount to a new retirement announcement or suggest that he is considering leaving Formula 1 immediately.
Verstappen’s recovery strengthens Red Bull’s outlook for 2027
Although Antonelli has already secured the drivers’ championship, Verstappen’s recent results have changed the competitive picture.
The Dutchman has outscored Russell by 90 points across the latest five races, turning a substantial deficit into a 17-point advantage in the fight for second.
Mercedes has acknowledged that it could consider measures to support Russell’s challenge, although no preferential strategy has been confirmed.
The situation is examined in GRANDE PRÊMIO’s analysis of Verstappen’s recovery against Russell.
For Red Bull, the final three rounds will provide an opportunity to assess whether its recent improvement can continue into 2027.
Verstappen’s confidence, however, does not appear to depend on winning another championship immediately. His comments suggest that believing in his own ability remains fundamental to his decision to continue racing.
GRANDE PRÊMIO is following every session of the 2026 Formula 1 championship, which resumes in Las Vegas on November 19–21.
