Damon Hill tells Max Verstappen he would be “wise” to consider shock F1 option

1996 F1 world champion Damon Hill believes Max Verstappen should consider taking a sabbatical if Red Bull’s performance doesn’t improve.

Verstappen’s F1 future has continued to be a hot topic since Helmut Marko expressed concerns that Red Bull could lose their star driver if the team’s on-track performance doesn’t improve.

Red Bull have been consistently out-performed by McLaren over the last year.

It means Verstappen is unlikely to win a fifth consecutive F1 drivers’ title this year.

Verstappen is thought to have an exit clause in his F1 contract linked to Red Bull’s performance.

As a result, speculation has been rife about Verstappen possibly making the switch to either Mercedes or Aston Martin.

Despite showing interest in Verstappen last year, Toto Wolff has insisted he’s happy with his current driver line-up.

Aston Martin have Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll locked down for 2026.

Even if they’re able to offer Verstappen an extraordinary contract in terms of salary, their on-track performance alone wouldn’t give Verstappen much optimism.

Hill weighs in on Verstappen’s future

One possibility for Verstappen is taking a sabbatical.

Another factor in play is the recent birth of his daughter, Lily.

A year away from the sport would allow Verstappen to spend time with his daughter and weigh up which team is performing best in 2026.

2026 sees the introduction of entirely new engines and vastly different chassis rules, meaning the competitive order is likely going to be shaken-up.

Giving his view on Verstappen’s F1 future, Hill said on the BBC’s Chequered Flag podcast: “I mean, Red Bull are fighting to retain Max Verstappen.

“I mean, there is a clause in the contract. It’s been explained quite clearly that there’s a performance clause, and if they don’t match the performance clause, and let’s be honest, he’s never delivering less than 100%.

“If they don’t give him that, then he’s free to go wherever he wants. So, Red Bull are under pressure.

“Where can he go? I don’t know. George is on the verge of signing, they say, with Mercedes again, and then that’s that blocked out. I don’t know.

“I think he could. It might be a wise thing to do when you can see which way the wind’s going to blow after these new regulation changes.

“He’s young, he’s won four world championships, he’s won goodness how many races.

“Nobody knows what’s on the other side of the end of this season. What is going to happen?

“He could sit back next year and go, OK, I can see which way the future’s going to go for the next 10 years and whatever team is doing well will find the money to pay for having Max.”