F1 legend makes bold “beginning of the end” claim for Max Verstappen at Red Bull

Juan Pablo Montoya believes it’s “the beginning of the end” for Max Verstappen at Red Bull following a difficult start to the 2025 F1 season.

Verstappen finished a distant sixth at the F1 Bahrain Grand Prix on Sunday.

Red Bull’s pace was so poor that it took until the final lap for Verstappen to overtake Alpine’s Pierre Gasly on the final lap.

Red Bull’s poor weekend resulted in a ‘crisis meeting’ after the race with the team’s top management present.

It came after Sky Sports analyst Ted Kravitz saw Verstappen’s manager, Raymond Vermeulen, arguing with Red Bull’s Helmut Marko.

Kravitz thought Vermeulen’s complaints were linked to Red Bull’s poor pit stops in Bahrain.

Speaking to Plejmo, Montoya explained why Verstappen’s career at Red Bull is unlikely to last much longer.

“It’s the beginning of the end of Max Verstappen at Red Bull. For sure it is. But in a way, Max has been pretty blessed with being in the best car,” Montoya said.

“But this year is a bit of a reality check. Max wants to win, but if the Red Bull is not competitive, the negotiation is very different. I think the negotiation a year ago before he re-signed with Red Bull when Toto was very outspoken about signing Max, was very different to what it would be now.

“The number was an insane number. McLaren also reached out to Max to see how much it was before they re-signed Piastri, and the number was insane. So, at some point Max needs to make a decision, ‘Do I want to try to be in the best car, do I want to make a ton of money?’”

Will Verstappen leave Red Bull?

While Verstappen is contracted at Red Bull until the end of 2028, his F1 contract is thought to have several clauses.

As a result, he could walk away at some point, with Aston Martin likely interested in his services.

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff also expressed his strong desire to sign Verstappen last year.

However, Mercedes will likely retain George Russell and Kimi Antonelli for 2026.

Montoya gave his view on Verstappen’s options post-Red Bull: “If I was Max, I would be concerned. Six months ago, he could have asked for any amount of money to go anywhere and people would have paid it.

“The way Red Bull is running right now, he could go to Toto and say, ‘Look, pay me less than you had to pay me, but let me drive your car’.

“Is he willing to do that? I’ll be amazed to see Verstappen at Red Bull, he could also seek Aston Martin move.

“There’s two scenarios for Max. Does he want to win? Or does he want to make a ton of money and maybe win?

“If he wants to win, he’s going to go and convince Toto to take him. But if he wants to maybe win and make a ton of money, go with Lawrence Stroll with Aston Martin.”