Max Verstappen warned FIA pressure ‘won’t work’ if that’s the basis of quit threat talk
Red Bull driver Max Verstappen has had a troubled start to 2026
Damon Hill has warned Max Verstappen that if he is playing a game of cat-and-mouse with the FIA to influence the rule-making, he will come off second best.
Almost from his very first lap in the Red Bull RB22, Verstappen has complained that the new engine formula would ruin the racing.
Damon Hill warns Max Verstappen FIA pressure will not work
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The Red Bull driver labelled it “anti-racing”, “Formula E on steroids” and “Mario Kart”.
Such is his dislike of the sport’s new 50/50 split between electrical and battery power, which has led to super clipping near the end of the straights and battery-dependent passes, Verstappen has threatened to quit.
Speaking after qualifying in Japan, where he was P11, he said: “I don’t get upset about it. I don’t get disappointed or frustrated by it anymore with what’s going on.
“You know how I think about stuff, I don’t need to mention it again. So yeah, a lot of stuff obviously for me, personally, to figure out.”
Pressed on what he needs to think about, Verstappen simply replied: “Life here.”
He doubled down on that 24 hours later, saying: “I’m thinking about everything inside this paddock… You just think about, is it worth it? Or do I enjoy being more at home with my family, seeing my friends more when you’re not enjoying your sport?”
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For 1996 world champion Hill, the answer is a simple one.
If a driver is not enjoying Formula 1, he should quit.
“I think if you’re not happy doing something, you should stop and do something else,” he told the BBC. “You’re not obliged to do it.
“Max doesn’t have to do this.
“He’s a new dad as well, and he’s been doing it [F1] for a long time.
“There does come a point where the chewing gum loses its flavour a bit. Maybe he needs a break.”
However, if this is more a case of Verstappen threatening to quit in a gambit to influence the FIA into changing the regulations, Hill believes the four-time world champion won’t be on the winning side of that standoff.
“If he’s saying this in order to get some leverage on the way things are at the moment, I don’t think that will work,” Hill continued.
“People will just say ‘Max, go away, come back when you’ve had a think about it’.
“You can’t always get what you want.”
The FIA and the Formula 1 teams will meet on 9 April to discuss the new regulations, but unless there is unanimous agreement, or at worst a super majority, nothing is likely to change this season.
Verstappen has a Red Bull contract that runs through to the end of the F1 2028 season, but of late it is his love for racing at the Nürburgring that has excited the Dutchman. Verstappen will contest May’s 24 Hours, which could be a telling moment in his racing future.
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