Verstappen Extends Red Bull Contract to 2020

[Paul Jeffrey]

Young Dutch superstar Max Verstappen has renewed his Red Bull contract to the end of 2020, extending his current deal for a further season of racing with the Austrian team.

The 20-year-old driver has broken records throughout his short tenure in the top flight of open wheel racing, securing the award of youngest ever Grand Prix winner following his success at the Spanish Grand Prix last season, the first of two career victories for the Red Bull man.

Despite what has been a difficult season for Verstappen to date, the new deal will be seen as something of a relief for both parties, tying them together until the conclusion of the 2020 racing season and leaving Verstappen in a strong position to access his options at a time when many of the big name drivers could be out of contract with their respective teams.

“Red Bull has always shown their faith and belief in me with actions; inviting me in to the young driver programme as a 16-year-old, then giving me my start in Formula One when I was just 17, and then the opportunity to race with Red Bull Racing where I had such a dream start with this team,” said Verstappen on the confirmation of his contract extension.​

“They have always backed me and my ambition and I know we share that ambition. Their support, from the guys and girls in the factory through to the crew in the garage, no matter what plays out on the race track, has always been 100 percent. We’ve also had some fun times! I’m very happy to commit further to Red Bull Racing and I’m looking forward to working together to enjoy more success in the years to come.”
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Of course Red Bull are keen to hang on to one of the brightest talents on the Grand Prix grid for another three seasons, and with a deal via their junior Toro Rosso outfit to potentially utilise works Honda power in coming seasons should the Japanese concern perform to expectation in the next few years, Red Bull are well on their way to building the squad back to the level enjoyed during the golden Sebastien Vettel years.

Christian Horner, Red Bull Racing Team Principal added: “We are delighted that Max has agreed to extend his contract with Red Bull Racing. We had a phenomenal start together in Spain last year and Max has only pushed on from there. It was a great moment for the whole team to see him put the frustrations of this season behind him in taking that fantastic victory in Malaysia last month. He is pure racer, with an undeniable talent at the wheel and a rare instinct for what it takes to compete consistently at this level.​

“Coupled with a committed work ethic and a mature approach to learning his craft that belies his years, Max is right to be hungry for success and we are looking forward to extending that journey with him in our hunt for Formula One World Championships. As we now look to the long term with Max he is in the best place in the sport to build a team around him to deliver our shared ambition.”
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Daniel Ricciardo will remain alongside Verstappen next season, with the Australian's contractual situation also due to be a reviewed in the coming months.

For more from the world of Formula One head over to the Formula One sub forum here at RaceDepartment.

Pleased to see Verstappen remain at Red Bull until 2020? Can Verstappen and Red Bull fight for the title during the next three years? Let us know in the comments section below!

 

[CC]

Good job

 

[pcraenme]

Very wise choice. Vettel and Hamilton will be number 1 drivers for the next few years at Ferrari and Mercedes and Max will never accept a number 2 driver position. If Red Bull / Renault get their act together next year, there will be a great Lewis/Sebastian/Max battle next year. The big gamble here... what engine will RB use in 2019/2020?

 

[Paul Jeffrey]

what engine will RB use in 2019/2020?

My bet? A competitive Honda.

Honda in 2015, 16, 17 = Joke. Honda going forward? A company like that must get it right soon, they are just too good to continue to perform like this..

Very astute move by the Red Bull group to secure this deal for Toro Rosso, I think it could work out massively well in the near future.

Or , who knows

 

[Ole Marius Myrvold]

With the talks coming out of RB, I just have to repeat what I said last year - time for Ricciardo to look to another team.

 

[Jayblue]

Verstappen is a great talent for sure and Red Bull must be thrilled to keep him with this contract extension. I personally think Ricciardo is on the same level however, his overtaking is clinical and he really seems to get the better of Max in a lot of the races. I wonder if he will be moving on to another team?

 

[Mr Latte]

With the talks coming out of RB, I just have to repeat what I said last year - time for Ricciardo to look to another team.

I would like to see him with Alonso at Mclaren

As for Max and 2020 at RedBull he will be able to goto whatever top team wants him, whichever one that will be at that time. No way he will not have clauses in the contract if that team is not RedBull and Ferrari, Mercedes or Mclaren have the car that can win a championship.

 

[muzikant]

Good deal for Maxi they have Adrian Newey and a few good people around him. I wish him all the luck in the future

 

[Maurits Vernel]

he really seems to get the better of Max in a lot of the races.

Not true at all. Max is consistently quicker than Daniel and is pretty much always ahead of Daniel in the races.. until his car breaks down, that is.

 

[pcraenme]

My bet? A competitive Honda.

Honda in 2015, 16, 17 = Joke. Honda going forward? A company like that must get it right soon, they are just too good to continue to perform like this..

Very astute move by the Red Bull group to secure this deal for Toro Rosso, I think it could work out massively well in the near future.

Or , who knows

I think I saw an interview on Dutch TV (Ziggo Sport) with Christian Horner a few weeks ago and he said it was not going to be Honda for RBR in 2019/2020. I would not be surprised if they would be using a Mercedes engine in 2019/2020. In 2021 there will be new engines, so that may be the moment to switch to Honda or a new developed engine by Aston Martin or Porsche.

 

[wombat999]

He should be happy.
Recently there were reports that his finances would be very happy as well with a nine digit (!!!) payout per year.

An obscene amount of money.

 

[Mr.Mystery]

This means he is out of the race for Ferrari seat in 2019? when the Iceman's contract end

 

[WOKOWEN1]

I think the bad move was done earlier. Verstapen should not have moved to red bull in first place. He should've stayed in toro rosso where he would have ended up with more points and would certainly grab a seat with Ferrari or Mercedes on the following season. Now he will just be stuck trying to beat Daniel wich will be impossible for him to achieve.

 

[Ole Marius Myrvold]

He should be happy.
Recently there were reports that his finances would be very happy as well with a nine digit (!!!) payout per year.

An obscene amount of money.

That would be extremely weird from Red Bull, they have always had a low base salary for all their drivers. They have however had some nice bonuses.

 

[Nightfly]

I think the bad move was done earlier. Verstapen should not have moved to red bull in first place. He should've stayed in toro rosso where he would have ended up with more points and would certainly grab a seat with Ferrari or Mercedes on the following season. Now he will just be stuck trying to beat Daniel wich will be impossible for him to achieve.

How would he have more points had he stayed at Toro Rosso? And how will he be stuck trying to beat Daniel, and how will that be impossible? Max is already faster most of the time and he is now very clearly the first driver for Red Bull.

 

[WOKOWEN1]

How would he have more points had he stayed at Toro Rosso? And how will he be stuck trying to beat Daniel, and how will that be impossible? Max is already faster most of the time and he is now very clearly the first driver for Red Bull.

How can you say Verstappen is faster??? Look at the difference in points between the 2 drivers. Everyone could be as fast as him if the cars survive that driving style.

 

[Jayblue]

Can't see how verstappen is the out and out number one for Red Bull - how can he be with so few points compared to Ricciardo? Both are very talented drivers, Max maybe a little faster on his day but Ricciardo the more mature in his approach of the two.

 

[aka2k]

Holland's answer to Sheldon Cooper. Misfired though: he's a driver, not a science guy.

 

[Nightfly]

How can you say Verstappen is faster??? Look at the difference in points between the 2 drivers. Everyone could be as fast as him if the cars survive that driving style.

Really? Every single driver drives the car on its very limit. If you seriously blame the mechanical failures on the driver then you need to understand that the car cannot be pushed past its limits no matter how hard the driver pushes.

When you look at the qualifying record, the lap times, you can clearly see Verstappen is the quicker driver in most cases.

 

[WOKOWEN1]

Really? Every single driver drives the car on its very limit. If you seriously blame the mechanical failures on the driver then you need to understand that the car cannot be pushed past its limits no matter how hard the driver pushes.

When you look at the qualifying record, the lap times, you can clearly see Verstappen is the quicker driver in most cases.

Austin texas...just another day that proved you wrong. Guys qualifying doesn't tell who's faster these days. You need to be reliable and that is what Max is still learning ( the hard way unfortunately for him and the team) so don't come here saying Max is the new Senna or whatever you wish he was. Get real