Laurent Mekies admits Red Bull need Max Verstappen’s ‘magic’

New Red Bull boss Laurent Mekies has admitted Max Verstappen is “central” to the team’s future.

Verstappen, who is contracted to Red Bull until 2028 but has mechanisms in his current deal that could enable him to leave, has been heavily linked with a blockbuster switch to Mercedes.

The four-time world champion appeared to hint at staying with Red Bull next year as he insisted that Christian Horner’s sudden sacking as team principal would have no impact on the decision he makes about his own future.

"I don't think it will matter at all for my decision in the future,” Verstappen told media including Crash.net on Thursday at the Belgian Grand Prix. "The only thing that matters is that we work on the car and make it as fast as we can make it, really.”

And Red Bull is determined to give Verstappen a competitive car, having slipped down F1’s pecking order over the past year and a half.

"The truth is Red Bull is hugely committed to Max," Mekies told F1.com. "And the way we can be hugely committed to Max is by giving him the best possible car.

“And giving him the best possible car is what every single person in the company wants more than anything else.

"So that's where the effort is made really. And the rest will be a consequence. But of course, Max is central to the project and he's key to the project and we need his magic at the racetrack.

“He has been with the team for a very long time and he has huge inputs in helping us driving the next competitive edge that we will need to build.”

Asked if Red Bull can convince Verstappen to stay, Mekies replied: "I think the team has everything to do that.

“It has the means. It has the spirit. And more importantly, it has the talents. So in short, yeah, I think we have everything to be able to give that to our drivers."

On the challenges Red Bull face

Mekies acknowledged the challenge he faces in taking over at a struggling Red Bull, but stressed the whole team is pushing in the same direction to return to winning ways.

"There is only one desire at Red Bull," he explained. "And it goes from the board to anybody at Red Bull F1.

"They are here to fight for the wins, to fight for the championships. And they are here with the maximum commitment from the group to say, we want the team to continue fighting for the win, fighting for the championships, getting the best car out there.

"So that's what naturally the target is. It is not a new target. It is not a renewed commitment. It is just a renewed commitment from the team and from the group to say, it's a team we want to fight for the championship with and we will do everything we need to do to continue doing so in the future.”

Mekies added: "I think Red Bull has been in the sport for so long. They know exactly how the sport is working and they know what you can expect short term, what you can expect medium term, what you can expect long term.

"We have these unbelievable challenges ahead with sport trains that will mix together with the 2026 regulation challenge. So you don't need to explain these sort of things to the management. They are completely conscious of those dynamics.

"You have the fire at every level of the company in terms of how aggressively and the level of aggressions you want to put in every single level of the company to be able to give that fight for the win, for the championships, a big try."