On Thursday, The Daily Mail published the rumour that Aston Martin is reportedly approaching sponsors with the intention of signing Max Verstappen on an astronomical £1 billion salary, spread over several years.
Although that amount was mentioned in capital letters, the interest itself should come as no surprise. It is no secret that both Aston Martin and Mercedes are still hoping for the Dutchman’s services at some stage of his career. Mercedes boss Toto Wolff said that the focus is fully on current drivers George Russell and Kimi Antonelli, but told the Dutch press in Zandvoort that it doesn’t close the door on Verstappen.
“I still feel that our paths will cross one day,” Wolff said.
From an Aston Martin point of view, an eye on Verstappen is not surprising either. The Silverstone-based team has built a state-of-the-art campus at Silverstone, in which its new wind tunnel should play a crucial role.
The technical team has been reinforced with Enrico Cardile and, most importantly, Adrian Newey. Besides that, Honda has been signed as an engine supplier from 2026 onwards. Because Aston Martin is the only team that Honda will supply its engines to, it will become a sort of factory team, as is the case now with Red Bull.
All these aspects are ingredients for success, although two pieces of the puzzle do not match them: both drivers. Lance Stroll is not championship material and Fernando Alonso will be 44 next year – when the new regulations come into effect – and 45 later that season. So it’s not a line-up to build on in the really long term. Add to that the fact that Lawrence Stroll wants to pull out all the stops to make his Formula 1 project succeed, and it makes sense that he is willing to invest even more.
Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin AMR24, Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB20, Pierre Gasly, Alpine A524
Photo by: Lubomir Asenov / Motorsport Images
Verstappen himself has never concealed his respect for both Newey and Honda, but this week’s reports seem rather premature. Aston Martin firmly denied that any sponsors are being approached with a Verstappen and such a business case seems more of an ‘if, then’ scenario.
Red Bull has good hopes but must keep delivering
For now, sources within Red Bull Racing say that the team is confident it can keep Verstappen at least until the end of 2026. The much-discussed Helmut Marko clause was in theory an easy way out, and therefore a treat from Red Bull’s point of view, but a…
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