"I don't see him being a Fernando Alonso": Christian Horner on how long Max Verstappen will stay in F1

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner has admitted that he does not expect Max Verstappen to keep racing in F1 until he is past the age of 40 like Fernando Alonso.

Despite only being 25, Verstappen already has 166 GP starts under his belt ever since he made his debut as a teenager with Toro Rosso (now AlphaTauri) back in 2015. In that time, the Dutchman has amassed 22 pole positions, 37 wins, 80 podium finishes, and two Drivers' World Championship titles and counting.

While it may seem like Verstappen has all the time in the world to try and rewrite all the records in the sport, Horner thinks he may call time on his F1 career sooner than most people would expect.

In a recent interview with Sky Sports F1, the Briton was asked to comment on Max Verstappen's future in the sport. Horner said:

"Max (Verstappen) is his own man and he is very, very strong in his opinions and on his outlook and what wants to do with his life. and I don't see him being a Fernando Alonso and still racing at 41 or 42 years of age, or maybe not in Formula 1."

The 49-year-old believes he will be racing as long as he feels passionate about the subject, be it in the real world or its virtual counterpart. He went on to add:

"But, what is his love and passion is racing and if he is not racing on track at the moment, he is racing in the virtual world. He is driving GT cars for fun and his passion is just driving and racing and while that burns within him, he is going to keep going. But how long that burns for, that's each individual's journey. It is their own individual thing and they have got to find it out for themselves."

Max Verstappen is currently tied down to a contract with Red Bull that is expected to see him drive for the team until 2028. So, Horner need not fret over his immediate future just yet.

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Max Verstappen warns FIA about changing F1's DNA amid talks of removing free practice sessions

Reigning world champion Max Verstappen has warned the FIA about making too many changes to F1 after CEO Stefano Domenicali mentioned he was not a fan of free practice sessions. The Italian has been on record saying free practice sessions do little in terms of providing entertainment for the viewers.

Verstappen was vocal in defending the system in place for race weekends during an interview with motorsport.com's Italian outlet when asked to comment on the suggestion. He said:

“I don't think [Stefano Domenicali] meant exactly that [removing free practice sessions[, because obviously you can't go to qualifying without free practice. But I'm not a fan of weekends with sprints, I'm not a fan of the number of races we do nowadays.”

The Dutchman went on to add:

“I'm also not a fan of changing the whole format [without practice sessions]. They have to be careful not to change the entire DNA of Formula 1. I think it's important not to play too much with this aspect, because then, obviously, at a certain point everything stops.”

Max Verstappen has also admitted to not being a fan of F1's decision to add too many Sprint races to the calendar. He even suggested that he may not be around for long in the sport if these trends continue.