Lando Norris has offered his thoughts on whether Max Verstappen will retire from F1 following his recent comments, which have cast doubt on his future.
Reigning world champion Norris fended off a late Verstappen surge in 2025 to secure his maiden world championship, with the Dutchman finishing just two points behind him in second.
In 2026, the Mercedes duo of Kimi Antonelli and George Russell are leading the pack at the top of the standings, while Norris sits fifth, having failed to secure a podium in the opening three races of the campaign.
As for Verstappen, he is ninth after an utterly awful start to the season, which has even prompted the four-time world champion to suggest he is considering his future in the sport following the Japanese Grand Prix.
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The Red Bull driver has spoken negatively about the 2026 regulation changes, comparing F1 to Formula E on “steroids”, while also saying it is less “fun”, “anti-racing”, and like “playing Mario Kart”.
Speaking after the Japanese Grand Prix, when asked if he was going to “walk away from F1 at the end of the year”, Verstappen replied: “That’s what I’m saying. I’m thinking about everything inside this paddock.”
There have even been reports linking Verstappen with a shock move to McLaren, although CEO Zak Brown has claimed he “couldn’t be happier with Lando and Oscar [Piastri]”.
“We have long-term agreements with them, and I think it’s the greatest driver pairing on and off the track,” he told Sky Sports F1 this week.
“So we have no intention of replacing either of our two superstars.”
Norris also had his say on Verstappen’s future in an interview with The Guardian, with the Englishman admitting that his rival would be “a miss” if he were to call time on his career.
“Hopefully things get better, and I just saw that he said he wants to win a fifth world championship at the minute, so I’m sure he’ll stay longer than people say,” Norris said.
“It would be a shame for the sport — it would be a miss for the sport — if that does happen, because he probably is one of the best drivers you’ll ever see in Formula One.
“It would be a shame for us because, as much as he makes our lives incredibly tough at times, he’s always good fun to race against and it’s always cool to race against someone who’s won four world championships. You always feel like you want to race against the best in the world, and he certainly is one of them, so it would be a loss for the sport.”
F1 announced several refinements to the sport’s regulations earlier this week, which will come into effect ahead of the Miami Grand Prix in May.
Topics: Formula 1, Max Verstappen, Lando Norris, Red Bull Racing, McLaren, Motorsport
Luke Davies