Max Verstappen walked into the Jeddah paddock with a dust cloud swirling over his future but insisted – for now – he is ‘very relaxed’ at Red Bull.
A couple of doors down, George Russell was unruffled about any prospect of Verstappen joining his Mercedes team. ‘I totally back myself,’ said the 27-year-old who is driving perhaps better than ever.
Three podiums in four races and splitting the two outstanding McLarens in Bahrain last week attest to this.
Heading into Sunday’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, Russell is 33 points ahead of his rookie team-mate Kimi Antonelli, who is often talked of within the team as the best thing that has happened to them since, well, Lewis Hamilton.
Actually, it is Russell who can legitimately claim that. Last season he blew Hamilton apart in qualifying and finished 22 points ahead of him. It was the second time in their three years together he had bettered the knight of the realm over the course of a season.
Hence Russell feeling relaxed despite his contract running out this year. He does not countenance the idea that if Verstappen were to join – a big if – Antonelli, aged 18, would better complement the Dutchman. Russell, as the theory goes, would be squeezed out.
George Russell shrugged off the prospect of competing for his Mercedes seat with bitter rival Max Verstappen, stating that he ‘totally’ backs himself
Russell has marked his territory since joining the Silver Arrows in 2022, having finished higher in the standings than Lewis Hamilton in two out of the three seasons they spent together
Verstappen’s future at Red Bull is up in the air after Helmut Marko expressed ‘great concern’ over the prospect of him staying
That would be a ludicrous betrayal. They could instead farm out Antonelli and pair the two big guns together. Or abandon interest in Verstappen and work with their own two, in-house stars.
As Russell said: ‘I believe in myself because I spent three years with the greatest driver of all time as my team-mate, a seven-time world champion. Nothing scares me after that.
‘You have to prove yourself against everyone.
‘I feel since the mid-point of last year I have been especially strong. Performance is my currency, so I am in a happy and content position.’
Russell speaks regularly to team principal Toto Wolff, saying he can’t say when negotiations started; they are just ongoing. He cites June as the likely month to seal the deal.
Wolff, for once, was unstintingly glowing in his praise of Russell after last week’s latest demonstration of his talent. ‘Unbelievable drive,’ was the Austrian’s verdict. A new contract sounded likely right there.
The driver market is in vogue because Red Bull’s motorsport adviser Helmut Marko expressed ‘great concern’ over Verstappen’s future after the team struggled in Bahrain. The quadruple world champion finished sixth.
His Red Bull has struggled for balance and only Verstappen’s bravura win in Japan has painted any serious gloss on the team’s season.
Russell cited his record against Hamilton as the reason behind his unfaltering confidence
Verstappen is a pragmatist and a loyalist. He is unlikely to jump ship in haste, though he could exercise a break clause that would allow him to move in the summer if Red Bull bump along as the fourth best team. He is signed up until 2028 as it stands, but that is just a bit of paper.
‘A lot of people are talking about it except me,’ Verstappen said of his future.
‘I just want to focus on my car and work with the people in my team. That is all I am thinking about in F1.
‘I am very relaxed. I am happy, I am just not very happy with our car.’
The plot thickened when Verstappen’s manager Raymond Vermeulen was seen in animated conversation with Marko in the Bahrain paddock after the race.
‘To my knowledge they were having a conversation about everything, which is allowed,’ reasoned Verstappen.
‘I think we were all left frustrated with things that went wrong in the race. That’s what Raymond and Helmut spoke about and Christian (Horner) came along as well.
‘We care about the team, the people and the results.’
Verstappen – whose deal expires in 2028 – has no interest in outside noise around his future
It seems unlikely Verstappen would commit himself elsewhere on a long-term basis until he sees how the all-new 2026 regulations affect the pecking order.
A year out, having fun in other forms of motorsport might even be a possibility. But whatever Verstappen does, Russell is not bothered.
Big weekend for Lando Norris
This weekend’s race feels like a big one for Lando Norris. He started the season as favourite for the title, though Oscar Pistari in the other McLaren now carries that distinction.
Piastri won pulverisingly in Bahrain. Norris complained about feeling uncomfortable in the car; that he did not feel he could push it to its limits. It was a curious disparity in viewpoints.
Asked if his self-flagellating, soul-bearing nature was helpful to his driving, Norris said: ‘I’d say 95 per cent, yes, because it is who I am. But a few other per cent are important too.’
Worrying talk, if you ask me.
Oscar Piastri has usurped McLaren team-mate Lando Norris as the title favourite recently
Ollie Bearman’s anniversary
Happy memories for Ollie Bearman on returning to Jeddah. It was here a year ago that he stepped into the Ferrari at the last moment to replace the appendicitis-stricken Carlos Sainz.
It was an early warning of what can be produced in a car new to him, and as an untested teenager on one of the most daunting tracks in the world. He finished seventh.
Admittedly, he was a Ferrari test driver and knew his way around the steering wheel, but what a baptism of fire. Whatever else he achieves, he can always cherish that day.
Alcohol ban in Saudi Arabia
This is the only dry race on the calendar. The other Muslim countries permit drinking in hotels. Saudi Arabia, however, strictly forbids it. Under Sharia Law consumption is a haram offence.
One suspects that if the sports’ boom here is going to attract international audiences some relaxation of the non-booze edict would be required.
As it stands, the 2034 World Cup will be alcohol-free. Asked if an exception would be made in hotels, the Saudi ambassador to Britain, Prince Khalid bib Bandar Al Saud, told LBC, said it would not be. ‘Rather like our weather, it’s a dry country,’ he added. Which is fair. It’s their custom.
Ollie Bearman made his F1 debut at Jeddah last year, when he stepped in to replace the appendicitis-stricken Carlos Sainz for Ferrari
For now, at least, a line has been drawn in the the sand.
Steven Gerrard still in the Kingdom
Steven Gerrard attended Bahrain last weekend and, according to sources there, still lives in the kingdom despite having left Saudi club Al-Ettifaq by mutual consent earlier in the year.
They had won just five of their 17 matches up to that point of the season. Which put an end to the Liverpool legend’s reputed £15million-a-year contract.
Bahrain is a destination of choice for European footballers’ families when contracted in the region. See the item above for a clue as to why. And the tax system is hardly a deterrent, either.