Verstappen’s stance is clear. The 27-year-old is in F1 to fight for World Championships, rather than podiums or top-five finishes. Unlike Charles Leclerc at Ferrari and George Russell at Mercedes, he does not want to lead a long-term rebuild project - he wants immediate success.

Johnny Herbert believes Max Verstappen was “unprofessional and disrespectful” on the Saudi Arabian GP podium after finishing second to Oscar Piastri on Sunday. Former F1 race winner Herbert added that Verstappen should have been given a 10-second penalty for the incident at turn one on lap one with Piastri, instead of a five-second penalty.

Helmut Marko’s presence remains one pillar keeping Verstappen grounded at Red Bull, but contractual escape routes are already in place. One clause reportedly allows Verstappen to exit if he’s outside the top three in the standings by mid-season — a possibility that’s swung wildly across the first five rounds.