Max Verstappen retiring for real?
At the end of the recent Japanese Grand Prix, Max Verstappen gave a long interview to the BBC, where he described in detail his mindset after the opening races of the 2026 season. The Dutch champion’s situation is not simply frustration with Red Bull’s lack of competitiveness, but a deeper sense of dissatisfaction caused by a set of regulations that, in his view, are taking away all the enjoyment of driving.
Speaking on the Backstage Boxengasse podcast on Sky Deutschland, Ralf Schumacher does not believe in the retirement claims made by Verstappen:
“Being in Formula 1 is something special. Of course, he can always say that he has had enough. But try to find an alternative: a GT car – as nice as it may be – weighs 1.4 tons and is a completely different story. And then there is the opportunity to travel the world, to compete against the best drivers in the world. I cannot imagine that he could give all of that up so soon.”
“F1 is bigger than Verstappen”
Ralf Schumacher, while openly expressing his respect for Max Verstappen, reminded everyone of the bigger picture:
“Formula 1 is bigger than each and every one of us. Whether it is Bernie Ecclestone or any driver, if they were not there tomorrow, what would happen to F1? To put it bluntly, if Max Verstappen retired, it would be the same thing. If he no longer wants to race in Formula 1, that will be accepted and Red Bull will look for a new driver.”
The former Jordan, Williams and Toyota driver then questioned how Red Bull might react to Max Verstappen’s comments:
“His statements are not correct towards them, because they will be asking themselves: ‘But is he giving everything to get us out of the mess?’. Max has to be careful,” Ralf Schumacher concluded.
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