Whatever happens in the coming weeks and months, how Verstappen sees his future in the series might well impact any decisions left to be made.
He has identified several factors behind that thinking, including the human toll of a 24-race F1 calendar, which he feels is “way over the limit”, further time constraints caused by his PR commitments and the desire to pursue other avenues in life.
“I know very well what I want outside Formula 1,” Verstappen said before the Bahrain Grand Prix.
“It has more to do with the quality of life in general. The racing itself is great fun, but everything around it with the travelling, marketing and so on, at a certain point you might be done with it. Then it doesn’t matter what you earn.
“In the end, it’s more about being happy with what you do. You have to be able to give 100 per cent. At the moment that is not a problem at all, but at some point you have seen it all maybe.
“I have a lot of things that I’m already working on for the future, things outside of Formula 1. I also want to be able to go on holiday when I want to.”
Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, 1st position, on the podium
Photo by: Steven Tee / Motorsport Images
If at the age of 26 these thoughts seem to have crept up on Verstappen earlier than most drivers, it is worth remembering he has been fully committed to racing since he was a little kid, trotting to numerous karting events around Europe with his father as he was effectively raised to become a Formula 1 driver.
“I know I’m still very young, but I also know that I’m not doing this for another 10 years. From my side this is not sustainable,” he explained.
“From the age of eight or nine I’ve been living with a full schedule. At some point you think if it’s…
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