Red Bull Racing driver Max Verstappen doesn’t believe that he’s in contention to win a fifth consecutive Formula 1 title this season.

Max Verstappen is currently sitting third in the drivers’ championship with a 43-point deficit to current leader Oscar Piastri.

McLaren’s second driver, Lando Norris, splits the pair, but his pointless outing at the Canadian Grand Prix hasn’t done him any favours.

It would be a huge surprise if McLaren didn’t go on to win the constructors’ championship even with 14 race weekends still to play out.

Red Bull have been hampered by Liam Lawson and now Yuki Tsunoda’s difficulties this season, with the pair contributing just seven points between them in 2025.

Verstappen’s Red Bull future has been brought into question due to the team not delivering a potentially championship-winning car this year.

However, there have been signs of recent improvement, with the Dutchman beating both McLaren drivers on merit at the Canadian Grand Prix.

Add to that his victory at Imola and his strong pace in Spain before his penalty, and there’s every chance that Verstappen will still be a threat at the end of the campaign.

Photo by TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP via Getty Images

Red Bull have medium tyre advantage over McLaren after Max Verstappen’s latest exploits

A report from Motorosport after 10 Grand Prix weekends has examined how the top teams stack up against each other.

They believe that despite McLaren’s lead in the championship, they’re still facing three key issues.

Both drivers struggle to maximise the car’s potential during qualifying, and a new suspension brought to the race in Montreal hasn’t entirely fixed the problem.

The other issue is that Mercedes and Red Bull appear to have taken steps forward in recent races.

Race winner George Russell is being linked with Aston Martin, but he proved in Canada that, given the right car, he can dominate races.

The Silver Arrows proved that they no longer need cold temperatures to win races, with the sun beating down on Russell and teammate Andrea Kimi Antonelli as they stood on the podium in Montreal.

Red Bull believe that the last few races have also been ‘positive’, in particular for Verstappen.

They feel that their car is better at keeping the medium tyres alive, a key attribute given that Pirelli continue to take their tyre compounds softer to encourage more interesting strategy calls.

It’s not believed to be a ‘game-changing’ improvement, but it shows that McLaren aren’t as infallible as many think.

Max Verstappen’s Formula 1 future continues to be a point of contention

Verstappen has a Red Bull contract until the end of the 2028 season, but that’s not a guarantee that he’ll be in one of their cars next year, even if that’s the most likely outcome, as the driver market is far calmer than 2024.

Red Bull are aware Verstappen has a get-out clause in his current deal, but whether he chooses to activate it is another matter.

Virtually every team on the grid would welcome Verstappen with open arms if he decided to switch teams.

Mercedes and Aston Martin have been heavily linked with the Dutchman, but Red Bull’s recent improvements suggest that they’re on the right track to being competitive.

Red Bull’s new engine is said to be a ‘breaking point’ for Verstappen for 2026 when the sport’s regulations change.

He’ll be well aware of the progress Red Bull Powertrains are making, but Mercedes and Aston Martin won’t be shy about sharing details on how well their developments are going.