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Max Verstappen will reportedly leave Red Bull if team principal Christian Horner remains in power after the former's manager Raymond Vermeulen met with the Thai bosses in Dubai.
There has been a lot of chaos in the organization internally since Horner was accused of 'inappropriate behavior' by a female member of staff. He subsequently learned of any wrongdoing ahead of the season but has faced resistance from some key Red Bull Gmbh members such as CEO Oliver Mintzlaff over his position.
As reported by AMUS, Max Verstappen's father had previously stated that there is an internal power struggle going on within the Austrian team. Whilst the Austrian faction of the brand wants to oust Christian Horner, the Brit has found backing from the majority of Thai shareholders.
It is reported that amid reports of Horner's growing influence within the team, Max Verstappen's manager Raymond Vermeulen met with the Thai family to present their position on the matter. Vermeulen had a simple stance on the situation and claimed, "If Horner remains in power, Max Verstappen is gone."
The three-time world champion had publicly expressed his allegiance towards Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko and pointed out that he might leave the team if the Austrian leaves as well.
Mercedes team principal chimes in on potentially hiring Max Verstappen
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff stated that the partnership between the team and Max Verstappen 'has to happen' amid reports of the Dutchman potentially leaving Red Bull in 2025.
As per The Race, Wolff spoke about signing the Dutch driver to replace Lewis Hamilton in 2025 and said:
“Yes. You see what his performance levels are. But I wouldn't want to discount the other ones, too. We've got to look at ourselves and say, 'What is it that we can do with this car?'"
“He's extraordinary but we would give him a car that's a handful, difficult to set up and drive. And I'd rather make that step and be out there and say, 'This is a car you could drive because it's also going fast.' It's a kind of relationship that needs to happen at a certain stage. But we don't know when.”
Verstappen has a contract with the Red Bull F1 team until the end of the 2028 season and is currently leading the championship by four points. The Dutch driver has an opportunity to win his fourth consecutive title in 2024 and a potential fifth next year, so a move away from Red Bull would appear unlikely for now.
