Source: REUTERS/Rula Rouhana
[Saba Sports News] In the face of Aston Martin’s tempting $300 million contract offer, Max Verstappen chose loyalty as his response. This four-time F1 World Champion firmly stated after the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix: “A true warrior never deserts in battle!” Undoubtedly, Verstappen’s strong declaration gave peace of mind to the senior management of Red Bull Racing. Team business director Oliver Mintzlaff even excitedly announced: “He personally promised to retire here.” According to internal sources, Verstappen even proactively proposed adjusting his contract terms, converting part of his salary into funds for team development, which greatly boosted the morale of the Red Bull technical team. This season, the RB21 car of Red Bull showed a decline in performance, with Verstappen winning only one race in Japan, trailing McLaren’s rising star Oscar Piastri by 12 points in the championship standings. In response to rumors of triggering a “performance exit clause” in the contract, the Dutch driver showed extraordinary composure: “Every driver dreams of driving the fastest car, but retreat has never been my option.” Internal data shows that recently, Verstappen spent 80% of his personal time on the Red Bull simulator, working with engineers to tackle the ground effect issue. What moved everyone was that Verstappen privately promised Adrian Newey’s technical team: “I will make up for every defect of the car with the steering wheel.”