Christian Horner has given a big update on Max Verstappen's Red Bull future and believes there is a potential scenario which could be 'embarrassing' if it comes to pass.
Verstappen has established himself as an all-time F1 great after winning the last four Drivers' Championships with the Milton Keynes-based team.
But the likelihood of Verstappen adding a fifth crown this season looks increasingly slim with Red Bull's decline in competitiveness over the past year.
It appears one of the two McLaren drivers - Oscar Piastri or Lando Norris - will become world champion this year with the pair separated by just eight points at the top of the drivers' standings.
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Though Verstappen has two race wins to his name this year, he is now 69 points behind current leader Piastri, which is nearly three race wins' worth of points.
Unless there is a dramatic resurgence from Red Bull or a drop-off from McLaren, it appears unlikely Verstappen will win this year's title.
McLaren also look to be the firm favourites to retain the Constructors' Championship, with their current tally of 460 points more than double that of second-placed Ferrari.
Verstappen has a contract at Red Bull until the end of 2028, ahead of the next big rules cycle change which begins from next season onwards.
A major part of this will be a new type of engine where the electrical element will be increased to deliver half of the overall power.
Red Bull currently uses Honda engines, which they have done since 2019, but the Japanese manufacturer will be moving for 2026 to become the works' supplier for Aston Martin.
The Milton Keyes based team will be building its own engine for the first time via Red Bull Powertrains, which is being supported by US car giant Ford.
Speculation is swirling that Mercedes could swoop for Verstappen for next season onwards, with reports suggesting the Dutchman can use an exit clause to leave Red Bull if he lower than fourth in the Drivers' Championship by the summer break after the Hungarian Grand Prix at the start of August.
The last time there was a major overhaul of F1 engines in 2014, Mercedes emerged as the sport's dominant force thanks to having the best power unit, and claims in the paddock suggests the German company might have repeated this for 2026.
Horner addressed Verstappen's future over the weekend at the British Grand Prix and the topic of new engines came up.
Though the Red Bull team principal and CEO acknowledged the challenge by being a new power unit manufacturer, he feels it would be 'embarrassing' if Red Bull Powertrains produces a better product than Mercedes can manage at the start of the next rule set, as he repeated the view of wanting Verstappen to remain at Red Bull until the end of his current deal.
Speaking to Planet F1, Horner said: "Things go in cycles and sport goes in cycles. We’ve had two incredibly successful cycles in Formula 1 and what we want to do is build towards the next cycle.
"Now, of course, we want that to be with Max, but we understand the pressure that there is next year with us coming in as a new power unit manufacturer.
"The challenge of that is enormous. But we’ve got a hugely capable group of people. We’ve invested significantly. We’ve got a great culture within the team.
"Who knows? To expect us to be ahead of Mercedes next year is [unrealistic].
"It would be embarrassing for Mercedes if we were, or for any manufacturer.
"But I think we’re going to be in a competitive position, potentially even to where we are today relative to our other PU manufacturers.
"There’s everything to play for. What’s great is having it all under one roof; chassis engineers sitting next to engine engineers.
"That shouldn’t be underestimated when you’re talking about the packaging.
"When you’ve got the ability to have those groups communicating and talking with each other directly over a cup of coffee and within the same facility, that is priceless and that will pay dividends.
"Maybe it won’t be in '26, but '27, '28, and beyond, long term for Red Bull, 100 per cent it is the right thing."
Topics: Red Bull Racing, Max Verstappen, Formula 1, Mercedes
John McDougall