Red Bull push back 2026 F1 driver decisions with “focus on the championship first”
“We postponed our decision until the end of the season, because first we want to focus on the championship fight.”
Helmut Marko has confirmed that Red Bull will hold off on announcing their 2026 F1 driver line-up, prioritising the championship fight before making any final decisions.
Max Verstappen is 36 points off the lead with four rounds to go following the Mexico City Grand Prix.
Red Bull are still undecided on who will partner Verstappen for 2026.
Isack Hadjar is expected to be promoted alongside Verstappen for next year, leaving two seats at Red Bull’s junior team, Racing Bulls, still open.
Speaking after the race in Mexico, Marko revealed that any driver decisions will be made after Abu Dhabi in December.
“We postponed our decision until the end of the season, because first we want to focus on the championship fight,” he said, as quoted by Motorsport.com.
“No, but it will be around Abu Dhabi. We will just focus on the championship first.”
Red Bull boss Laurent Mekies confirmed they’re “not in a rush” to decide.
“We want to take a bit more time before we make a decision on the drivers. Yuki [Tsunoda] is making steps forward, and the other kids are making steps forward as well,” Mekies explained.
“For the decision, we accept that everyone would like us to decide soon. But we are not in a rush. We will take all the time we need.
“And we will give these guys as many chances as they can have to demonstrate on track who are the best drivers.”
Lindblad impresses
With two Racing Bulls seats up for grabs, Red Bull will have to decide between Yuki Tsunoda, Liam Lawson, and Arvid Lindblad.
Tsunoda has struggled since being promoted to Red Bull but has made progress in recent rounds.
Lawson has shown flashes of brilliance, although Hadjar has had the upper hand.
Lindblad impressed during his latest FP1 outing for Red Bull, deputising for Verstappen.
Speaking of Lindblad, Mekies said: “I think he did a great job. It’s so difficult to step up in FP1. It’s very different these days, as you don’t have many tyres and you don’t have many laps.
“But he did a very good job. You have seen all the timesheets by yourself, but he was very calm and gave all the right feedback. He didn’t put the foot wrong, and he didn’t break the car!
“So, honestly, he has impressed us on that FP1. No question about that. And we look forward to the next time [of having him] in the car towards the end of the year.”
In this article
Peter has been in the paddock for 20 years and has seen Valentino Rossi come and go. He is at the forefront of the Suzuki exit story and Marc Marquez’s injury issues.
Lewis regularly attends Grands Prix for Crash.net around the world. Often reporting on the action from the ground, Lewis tells the stories of the people who matter in the sport.
With a sharp eye for F1’s controversies and storylines, Connor is the heartbeat of our unbiased reporting.
Alex joined the Crash.net team in August of 2024 having covered consumer and racing motorcycle news at Visordown for two years.
Joining Crash.net in 2021 as an Editor for the Indonesian Edition, Derry oversees most of the Indonesian articles on the site.
Rachit joined the Crash.net team in 2025 with a primary focus on F1 and sportscar racing.
He previously served as a news editor at Motorsport.com, where he played a key role in the day-to-day editorial operations.
