“For us it's only about Max Verstappen”: Red Bull chief discredits Sergio Perez’s contribution to the team as he talks about 2025

Red Bull advisor Dr Helmut Marko claimed that no driver other than Max Verstappen can win the World Championship for the team. RBR is seemingly shifting its complete focus on the Dutchman in the 2025 season as Marko's comments seemed to sideline his teammate Sergio Perez.

Verstappen won his fourth consecutive World Championship after the Las Vegas Grand Prix. However, given that the RB20 is not the fastest car anymore, the team has been losing points in the Constructors' Championship, dropping to third place.

Their other driver, Sergio Perez, has remained inconsistent compared to Max Verstappen. This is one of the reasons Red Bull hasn't gained enough points during recent races to lead the Constructors' Championship. Perez's replacement has been speculated following his disappointing performances but the team hasn't confirmed anything yet.

Looking ahead to the 2025 season, Dr Helmut Marko claimed that the competition within the top four teams will be closer. He then mentioned that Red Bull's focus is on Verstappen, as no other driver "fits in with our [their] environment."

"Next year it will all be even closer together, I expect. I do think that at Ferrari Hamilton and Leclerc will take points from each other, and at McLaren Norris and Piastri too. At Mercedes we have to wait and see how stable they are."

"And Red Bull? For us it's only about Max. There is no other driver who fits in with our environment, who would also become champion," he told De Telegraaf.

As Red Bull lost their dominance on the grid, speculations rose that Max Verstappen might be looking to join another team to win more championships. However, he recently hit back on it.

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Max Verstappen targets to stay at Red Bull forever

The Dutchman debuted in F1 with Toro Rosso and moved to Red Bull Racing a year later, becoming the youngest winner in the sport's history. He has since been the face of the team, racing and battling with multiple teammates throughout the seasons.

He won his first title in 2021 and has continued to win since then as RBR's dominant period took over the grid. However, the team fell out of the top spot as the RB20's performance worsened in comparison to their rivals. This led to rumors that Verstappen might seek to race with another team.

However, Max Verstappen recently cleared the air surrounding the rumors. He mentioned that he aims to race with a single team throughout his career, and Red Bull is hopefully that team for him.

"It is not like I need to try to win the World Championship somewhere else," Verstappen said. "That is not a desire from my side. I am just happy where I am at. And it would also be very beautiful if you just could stay with one team and race there forever. I would like to believe [that could be with Red Bull]. That is the target."

"Am I bothered about a legacy? No. I don’t value my success because of what other people say. If I am happy, that is all that matters. In sport, you also need a bit of luck to be in the right team for a long time. It doesn’t mean that the guy with the most titles is actually the best," he concluded.

Max Verstappen currently has a contract with Red Bull till the 2028 season, the longest any other team has offered their driver.