Max Verstappen will need to decide very soon what he plans to do for the 2026 Formula 1 season.

Red Bull will be fully expecting Max Verstappen to stay exactly where he is, despite a difficult 2025 F1 campaign.

Verstappen has a contract with Red Bull until the end of the 2028 season, but it might not be as straightforward as that.

Red Bull are aware Verstappen has get-out clauses in his contract that could allow him to move on as early as the end of the current campaign.

The underperformance that Red Bull have displayed this season, as well as concerns about how competitive the team will be next year, has led to rumours about the Dutchman’s future.

TEAM DRIVER 1 DRIVER 2 Alpine Pierre Gasly N/A Aston Martin Fernando Alonso Lance Stroll Audi Gabriel Bortoleto Nico Hulkenberg Cadillac N/A N/A Ferrari Charles Leclerc Lewis Hamilton Haas Esteban Ocon Oliver Bearman McLaren Lando Norris Oscar Piastri Mercedes N/A N/A Racing Bulls N/A N/A Red Bull Racing Max Verstappen N/A Williams Alex Albon Carlos Sainz

2026 confirmed F1 drivers

Mercedes have been linked with signing Verstappen, and Toto Wolff and George Russell have alluded to discussions going on.

However, nothing has been agreed yet, and other teams in the paddock would be happy to welcome the 27-year-old into the team if the opportunity arose.

James Allen believes that Aston Martin, valued at £1.6bn, would be desperate to sign the four-time world champion.

Lawrence Stroll has spent millions building the team up, but Verstappen would be the ultimate investment.

READ MORE: Red Bull driver Max Verstappen’s life outside F1 from net worth to girlfriend

Aston Martin driver Fernando Alonso and Red Bull Racing driver Max Verstappen at a press conference during F1 pre-season testing in BahrainPhoto by ANDREJ ISAKOVIC/AFP via Getty ImagesAston Martin would pay Max Verstappen ‘whatever he wants’ to convince him to leave Red Bull

Allen was speaking on The Red Flags Podcast about Verstappen’s future and explained: “If you’re Toto, you’re going to have to go from a situation where you’re paying George Russell and Kimi Antonelli, who’s doing it for kind of like pocket change and some meal tokens.

“You’re going to put another 80 to 100 million dollars on your bottom line, cut your profits down and all the rest of it.

“So that’s a big, big decision. He’d love to have him, but I think he has to be sure that he really needs him.

“And Max, more importantly, has to know that Mercedes is the team to be with for the next three years.

Position Drivers’ Championship PointsPts 1 234 2 226 3 165 4 147 5 119 6 103 7 63 8 46 9 37 10 23

“It could be if he stays where he is, sucks it up next year, doesn’t win too much, has a look and actually likes what he sees from Honda, Adrian Newey, Aston Martin, then maybe he just goes there and takes Alonso’s seat for 2027 and commits himself for three years and tries to make that into a winning package.

“Lawrence Stroll will pay him whatever he wants to go and do that, and maybe even give him some shares like he gave to Newey.

“If you’re Max Verstappen, you’re the best driver in the world right now by a margin. You don’t need to move now.

“If you do move now, then it is an act of faith, it’s a big leap. It’ll be interesting to see what he does. I suspect he will not move before next year. If he does, it’s a big leap of faith.”

READ MORE: All to know about Aston Martin F1 Team from team principal to lineage

Why James Allen thinks Aston Martin would be a perfect fit for Max Verstappen

Allen continued to talk about the progress Aston Martin have made under Stroll and what they’re planning for the future.

He explained that the likes of team principal Andy Cowell and a reunion with Adrian Newey would make a move to the Silverstone-based team more appealing.

He said: “​​With Aston Martin, Lawrence Stroll runs things; he’s a very strong personality, but he wants to have that entrepreneurial spirit.

Position Constructors’ Standings PointsPts 1 460 2 222 3 210 4 172 5 59 6 41 7 36 8 36 9 29 10 19

“It’s an engineer-led organisation, Andy Cowell is the team boss there, I’ve known him for many, many years. He is an engineer, he’s an engine builder, but he thinks like an engineer.

“And Adrian Newey definitely thinks like an engineer, and so do all the people around them.

“So I think Max would find that kind of mentality appealing. And the fact that one guy can make the decisions, which is what [Dietrich] Mateschitz was at Red Bull too.

“Lawrence Stroll can say, you want that car painted orange tomorrow, I’ll paint it orange; he’ll do whatever it takes to win.”

How Max Verstappen’s camp previously responded to Aston Martin F1 offer

Lawrence Stroll has put a lot of resources into Aston Martin, completely renovating their factory, building a new wind tunnel and hiring some of the best staff available.

Everyone in the F1 paddock wanted Cowell before he joined Aston Martin, Newey’s record speaks for itself, and Enrico Cardile will soon join from Ferrari.

Securing Honda power units exclusively for 2026 is another coup for Aston Martin, but it doesn’t appear as though that’s enough to convince Verstappen to jump ship for next year.

Verstappen’s camp was offered a giant contract by Aston Martin at the start of the year, which was reportedly turned down.

It will be interesting to see if Aston Martin now sense another opportunity to sign the four-time world champion.