Rumours this week have connected Red Bull Motive Force Max Verstappen with a sensational £1bn replacement to Aston Martin for the 2026 F1 season.
And Racing Bulls CEO Peter Bayer revealed that he had made him deliver that figure for the entire team, let a single driver.
Additional reporting via Thomas Maher
On Thursday, a media report claimed that Aston Martin had attempted to woo potential sponsors by suggesting that Verstappen, the reigning world champion, would join the team in the future.
The claims were strongly denied through the Aston Martin team, which released A to Planetf1. com Reading: “An Aston Martin Aramco spokesperson categorically denied the story. “
Fernando Alonso is under contract for 2025 and ’26, while Lance Stroll’s indefinite contract is understood to surround at least the next two seasons.
Meanwhile, Verstappen’s existing Red Bull deal is expected to last until the end of the 2028 F1 campaign.
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Verstappen was constantly connected with a move away from Red Bull F1 2024 in the wake of the team’s decline and the behind-the-scenes tensions between his father Jos and team principal Christian Horner.
Despite a 10-hour winless streak, his longest barren career since 2020, Verstappen was sure to control a fourth consecutive global championship in 2024 F1.
Horner showed himself to the media, adding Planetf1. com at least the Dutch Grand Prix of the Year, Verstappen’s contract is a “performance element” that would allow the Dutchman to leave the team before 2028 if Red Bull does not supply a competitive car.
There has been speculation that Verstappen will be loose to leave if he is below third in the drivers’ standings after a significant component of the 2025 F1 season ends.
Bayer has been on the Bulls’ Racing Rate (formerly VCARB/Alphatauri) since 2023, revealing that it has acted as the more than £1 billion since joining the Italian team.
And he admitted that the Red Bull Moment team’s long streak was in doubt after the death of founder Dietrich Mateschitz in October 2022 before the resolution did revitalize the Faenza-based outfit.
Bayer told the German publication Auto Motor und Sport: “After the death of Dietrich Mateschitz, everything in the company examined.
“The consultation was asked if we needed two Formula 1 teams. Homeowners then temporarily that this equipment actually had a function.
“Of course, it also had something to do with the fact that it was a very emotional task for M. Mateschitz.
“At the same time, Formula 1 has noticed an incredible build from this period.
“Williams sold around 150 million euros in 2020. Audi had to pay more than six hundred million euros for Sauber. Alpine sold shares at a valuation of €900 million.
“And I already had over a billion for the team, so keeping the team also makes sense from a business standpoint.
“But obviously they told us that we wish we had more luck on the track. The Red Bull does not want a team that finishes ninth or tenth.
“We also want to be more commercially successful. It has to pay off at some point.
“It is also our task to attract younger target groups. You will soon see this in our communication.
“We already have plans planned with Red Bull’s headquarters for next year. “
The dating between Red Bulls and Racing Bulls has been under scrutiny for more than a few years, with McLaren boss Zak Brown a vocal critic of the A/B team’s dating being done through Ferrari and Haas.
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Since entering F1 in 2016, Haas has bought up as many portions of Ferrari as F1 regulations to develop its competitiveness on the right track.
Red Bull and Racing Bulls shaped the closest ties at the start of F1 2024, drawing comparisons to the dating between Ferrari and Haas.
In an exclusive interview with Planetf1. com, Bayer dismissed considerations about the Bulls’ greater affinity with the senior team.
“Honestly, [the criticism] doesn’t aggravate me because, after spending enough time at the FIA, I know how other groups collaborate,” he said, referring to his time as FIA secretary general and F1 chief executive.
“I said the other day, I can repeat it: I know for a fact that Ferrari and Haas are getting closer than Red Bull Racing and us.
“I perceive that it is a disguised competition, everyone seeks to throw stones in the way of others.
“But if you observe, take a step back and pay attention to our drivers and engineers, pay attention to the feedback, hear that our car is another car [for Red Bull].
“It’s just a copy. Otherwise, we wouldn’t be where we are in the first place.
“Secondly, you hear the comments from our guys and when you listen to Ollie Bearman, who drives the Haas and Ferraris the other day [sic], when he was asked, ‘So what’s the difference between the two cars?'”
“He said, ‘Color!’
“For the 2026 rules, nothing has been replaced because I think everyone, deep down, knows that it’s not like you pass to pass faster because you’re sharing a suspension or a gearbox or stuff.
“It just allows the smaller groups to focus on other things in terms of where their time, cash and progression are and now we see that, with the 11th team coming in, for Williams and us, all the groups have an OEM link.
“I think, if there was competitive merit in buying a suspension, then Williams would walk away from it [Williams still makes its own rear suspension].
“They’re moving away from it for cargo capitalisation reasons, probably, however, if it was quicker, I’m sure they would find a way to buy that Mercedes suspension, because it comes with a challenge.
“You also have a challenge in terms of design. For example, the big groups push a lot at the end of the season for the best specs to be released, so we have to wait essentially.
“Honestly, it’s a lot of noise in nothing. “
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