Max Verstappen acknowledges that Laurent Mekies’ arrival won’t deliver immediate results but believes the new Red Bull boss is already setting the stage for future success in Formula 1.
The Dutchman said goodbye to his former team principal, Christian Horner, who was replaced by the Austrian outfit following a string of disappointing performances this season.
Verstappen has struggled to remain in the title fight, and despite standout victories in Japan and Imola, he has often been left with a car that cannot consistently challenge for wins, while McLaren continues to dominate both championships.
The RB21 has continued to prove tricky to drive heading into this season, with a balance that remains too unstable even for the reigning World Champion to handle. Results have yet to improve under Mekies’ leadership; Verstappen’s ninth-place finish in Hungary marked his joint-worst result of the season alongside his DNF in Austria.
Still, the Dutchman sees promise in the new direction. When asked whether Mekies’ arrival presented an opportunity to reset and push for changes that may previously have met resistance, Verstappen offered an upbeat assessment of his approach.
“Yeah, absolutely – that’s always the case,” he told media including Motorsport Week. “Of course, it’s still very early days, but I do like how Laurent is working.
“Very motivated, constantly asking the right questions to me, but also to the team.
“It’s nice to see. This year it’s very difficult to see any kind of benefit from that, but I hope in the coming year, two years, that we can really see his touch to the team. I’m very excited for that.”
Mekies on securing Red Bull’s crown jewel
With Mekies already making an impression behind the scenes, attention naturally turns to Red Bull’s biggest asset. Securing Verstappen’s future has been a priority for the team, and the new leadership is clear on how it intends to approach it.
Ahead of his debut weekend with the team in Belgium, Mekies outlined how the focus remains squarely on performance rather than negotiations.
“In terms of priority, I’m sure what Max wants is a fast car,” he said. “If we get him a fast car, it cancels out all the other considerations.
“So really, the focus is very much, as we said earlier, to get to know the team as quickly as possible in order to see how we can support, how we can build the next step of competitiveness in order to get a fast car and hence make it an easy call for Max.”
Verstappen reaffirmed his commitment to Red Bull ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix, putting to rest speculation linking him with a move to Mercedes.
With his contract running through the end of the 2028 season, Verstappen’s future at Red Bull was never truly in doubt — though with performances dipping, that could always shift, especially ahead of a major reset next year with the 2026 regulations.
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