Max Verstappen said after the Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka that he is rethinking his future in Formula 1 because he is no longer enjoying the sport under the new regulations.
Speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live, Verstappen made clear his frustration is not about Red Bull’s early-season competitiveness. He said he can accept racing in seventh or eighth place and understands that drivers cannot always fight for podiums, noting that he has not only been winning in F1. His complaint is about how the new format forces him to race, which he called unnatural for a racing driver and, at times, anti-driving.
Verstappen said the problem is no longer money. Having won four straight drivers’ titles from 2021–24 and narrowly missed last year’s title by two points to Lando Norris, he said he races for passion. As a child he imagined racing for the love of it rather than financial reward, and right now he is not having the fun he expected. He still values the team environment and the people around him, describing his crew as a second family, but added that sitting in the car has become “not the most enjoyable unfortunately.”
The 26-year-old pinpointed the sport’s new energy-management demands as the central issue. Under the hybrid rules, cars must recharge batteries repeatedly, sometimes several times each lap. That causes drivers to lose speed approaching corners after long straights as the power unit runs low and recharges, producing sudden position changes: overtakes followed almost immediately by re-passes when the opponent has more battery charge for the next straight.
Using a battle with Alpine’s Pierre Gasly for seventh as an example, Verstappen described how a pass around Suzuka could be immediately undone because he then had no battery left for the following straight. That pattern, he said, summed up his race and underlined why the current driving dynamics feel wrong to him.
Verstappen, who made his F1 debut in 2015 aged 17 and became the sport’s youngest winner at the 2016 Spanish Grand Prix, argued that enjoyment is essential to commit fully to a sport. He said he is still trying and giving his all, but the situation is not healthy if he is not enjoying what he is doing.
He also outlined alternatives should he step back from F1. Verstappen plans to race in this year’s Nürburgring 24 Hours, is developing GT3 projects and aims to run a team, indicating he would continue to pursue motorsport and other interests even if he left Formula 1.
Addressing the sport’s leadership, he suggested officials understand the need for change. F1 chiefs are due to meet during the four-week break between Suzuka and the Miami race to discuss potential rule tweaks, including whether to allow drivers to push flat-out in qualifying and how to address the energy-management effects that have altered on-track racing.
Verstappen’s comments come after a difficult start to the 2026 season, with sixth place in Australia and a retirement in China, and underline growing tensions about how the rule changes have reshaped the character of races.
