Max Verstappen says he is taking his time over deciding his future in Formula 1 after the Red Bull driver revealed he is considering quitting the sport.
Following the last race in Japan at the end of March, Verstappen suggested he was thinking about leaving F1 due to his dissatisfaction over the sport’s new regulations amid a poor start for Red Bull to the 2026 season.
However, the Dutchman says there is “nothing new” to comment on as he was “busy with other things”, including racing at the Nordschleife in Germany to prepare for a 24-hour race later in May.
“I still have time and I’m taking my time,” he said ahead of this weekend’s Miami Grand Prix.
Asked by Sky Italy whether a surge in performance from Red Bull would impact his decision, Verstappen added: “We are a little bit further behind at the moment than what we had last year.
“The rest, I mean, also for myself, I don’t know at the moment. What I said in Japan is still the same, but I also still have a lot of time.
Former F1 Academy champion Abbi Pulling thinks it will be tough for Verstappen to lose race engineer Lambiase at Red Bull
“I just want to be here. The team has worked really hard to bring updates to the car, so we first have to wait and see what they will do, because I have no idea, of course, what other teams came with as well.
“I just hope that we can escape a little bit that midfield battle, and we can be actually a bit further up front.”
Verstappen: I will have to find very rare relationship with Lambiase again
During the five-week gap since the last race, Verstappen’s race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase surprisingly announced he will leave Red Bull and join McLaren by 2028.
Lambiase has been Verstappen’s only permanent race engineer at Red Bull since their first race together in 2016 and the latter previously stated, after winning his maiden world title in 2021, he would no longer race in F1 if Lambiase was not his engineer.
However, he said on Thursday that Lambiase’s move to McLaren has “nothing to do” with his own future.
Craig Slater explains what we know so far about Lambiase’s shock move to McLaren and how this could affect Verstappen’s future
“We have a very honest and open relationship, so that was all good. I wish him all the best and for me there was no hard feelings on that,” added Verstappen.
“As a team of course we look to the future, we always want to innovate and improve and that’s what we are doing right now.”
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Verstappen half-joked he would be “an idiot” to try and keep Lambiase after the offer the 45-year-old received from McLaren and will need to find a similar relationship with someone else to keep driving in F1.
He told Sky Sports F1: “The general understanding that we [me and Lambiase] have with each other, and the chemistry works really well. And that’s very rare in racing. You don’t see that often that a driver and engineer, they gel that well together.
“That’s something that I’ll have to try and find again. It’s not that easy but sometimes, of course, that happens.”
Sky Sports F1’s Miami GP schedule
The Miami Grand Prix is a unique experience, watch our favourite moments from the last few years!
Friday May 1
2.35pm: F2 Practice
4.30pm: Miami GP Practice One (session starts at 5pm)*
7.25pm: F2 Qualifying
8.10pm: Team Bosses’ Press Conference
8.40pm: Miami GP Sprint Qualifying (session starts at 9.30pm)
Saturday May 2
2.55pm: F2 Sprint
4pm: Miami GP Sprint build-up
5pm: MIAMI GP SPRINT
6.30pm: Ted’s Sprint Notebook
8pm: Miami GP Qualifying build-up*
9pm: MIAMI GP QUALIFYING*
11pm: Ted’s Qualifying Notebook*
Sunday May 3
5.25pm: F2 Feature Race
7pm: Miami GP build-up: Grand Prix Sunday*
9pm: THE MIAMI GRAND PRIX*
11pm: Miami GP reaction: Chequered Flag*
12am: Ted’s Notebook*
*Also on Sky Sports Main Event
Formula 1 is in Miami for a Sprint weekend as the 2026 season resumes, watch live on Sky Sports F1 with Sunday’s Grand Prix at 9pm. Stream Sky Sports with NOW – no contract, cancel anytime
