Formula 1: Christian Horner hints at Max Verstappen’s 2020 destination

By Asher Fair | Aug 12, 2019

MONTMELO, SPAIN - FEBRUARY 20: Red Bull Racing Team Principal Christian Horner talks with Max Verstappen of Netherlands and Red Bull Racing in the garage during day three of F1 Winter Testing at Circuit de Catalunya on February 20, 2019 in Montmelo, Spain. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images) /

Christian Horner hinted at the team for which Max Verstappen will drive in the 2020 Formula 1 season amid rumors that he will leave Red Bull Racing for Mercedes.

Ever since Helmut Marko made a revelation in April about the contract that Max Verstappen has with Aston Martin Red Bull Racing, there has been speculation that Verstappen will leave the team and join Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport to replace Valtteri Bottas after the 2019 Formula 1 season concludes.

Of course, Verstappen signed a three-year contract extension with the Milton Keynes-based team back in October of 2017, so he is under contract to drive for the team through the 2020 season.

But Marko stated that there is a performance clause in the contract of the 21-year-old Dutchman that would allow him to leave the team after the 2019 season ends if they do not provide him with a car that is capable of winning the championship.

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As a result, the Mercedes rumor started.

Verstappen, his father, Jos, a former Formula 1 driver himself, and Mercedes team principal and CEO Toto Wolff all laughed off these rumors, but they only cooled them down temporarily.

Marko further heated up these rumors by expressing his concern that Verstappen could end up packing his bags because of how dominant Mercedes’ start to the 2019 season was. To add fuel to the fire, Jos retweeted the article containing Marko’s quote.

Verstappen’s manager, Raymond Vermeulen, later confirmed that this performance clause exists in his contract, although he did not go into detail about it.

Now Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Horner has hinted at Verstappen’s 2020 destination, although he made no official confirmation about the matter.

Here is what he had to say about these rumors when discussing the possibility of Verstappen and Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton becoming teammates next year, according to Formula 1.

"“Toto has certainly not spoken to me about it. He speaks to almost every driver on the grid, so I would think if he has had a conversation it’s been direct not through the team. The situation with Max is clear and as with other drivers there are always trigger points.“But in terms of having those two in one team, I haven’t heard from Lewis either that he wants to join next year.”"

The last sentence is pretty much a giveaway that Verstappen should be back for what would be his fifth consecutive season and fourth consecutive full season driving for Red Bull Racing.

Hamilton is under contract with Mercedes through the 2020 season after signing a two-year extension last July, and while Red Bull Racing may look to replace Pierre Gasly if he doesn’t “get it together” over the course of the 21-race 2019 season’s final nine races [UPDATE: Alexander Albon has been announced as Gasly’s replacement, effective immediately], there is literally no chance that the 34-year-old Briton will end up leaving the Silver Arrows to sign with the team.

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Will Max Verstappen return to Red Bull Racing for the 2020 Formula 1 season like Christian Horner hinted at, or will he end up joining Mercedes after all? It looks like the former is far more likely at this point.

Through the first 12 races of the season, Verstappen has completed every lap. He has earned two victories and recorded five podium finishes, and he has never finished outside of the top five. In fact, he is on a 21-race streak of top five finishes going back over one full year ago. He sits in third place in driver standings as the highest non-Mercedes driver with 181 points.

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