Red Bull warned of Max Verstappen losing interest by Mika Hakkinen if Sergio Perez doesn’t improve

Two-time F1 champion Mika Hakkinen has outlined a "dangerous" future for Red Bull's driver lineup with Max Verstappen comprehensively outperforming teammate Sergio Perez.

While Verstappen is on a roll winning seven races in a row, Perez has been struggling to even make it to the podium. Such is the imbalance between the two drivers that Verstappen could single-handedly haul Red Bull to win the constructor's championship.

According to Hakkinen, the current lack of competition could make the reigning champion lose motivation. He claimed that the Dutchman needs to be challenged by the driver in the second Red Bull.

"This situation is very challenging for the team and even dangerous in the long term in the sense that the level of performance can drop," Häkkinen said to F1 magazine.

"You simply cannot put all the weight of the team on Max's shoulders. He too can lose his motivation at some point. Of course, it's his job and he's obsessed with racing, but Max also needs to be challenged by competition within the team," he added.

The two-time F1 champion went on to add that a change in the driver lineup is required at Red Bull for a sustainable future. He reckons that such a change would only be better for the Dutch driver and the team itself.

"Something has to change there. Because as a driver you just need a teammate who challenges you to get better. Not only for yourself, but also for the team. Formula 1 is a sport where you as a team must have the drive to improve in all aspects in order to be successful." the Finn added.

Red Bull might not be worried about the near future as they are on track to claim both championships this season. However, with their rivals making huge gains, it will be important for the team for both cars to be at the front.

With Mika Hakkinen's prophecies coming true in recent times, the Milton-Keynes outfit will be considering his advice.

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Max Verstappen aiming to win the Belgian GP despite starting sixth on the grid

Max Verstappen in the F1 Grand Prix of Belgium

The qualifying session for Belgian Grand Prix witnessed another Max Verstappen masterclass as he claimed pole position by eighth tenths of a second. However, he had to relinquish his pole position to Charles Leclerc as he took a five-place grid drop for a new gearbox.

At the same track last year, Max Verstappen's pole was snatched in a similar manner as he had to start 14th. But a dominant race meant he won the race by a margin. The Dutchman is hoping to repeat the same this year.

"To be on pole again, I know I have to drop back with the penalty but it was the best I could do today." he said in parc-ferme interview.

"I mean, last year, I had more penalties and we could still win the race, so that's still the target on Sunday. But yeah, first let's see tomorrow, what the weather will do and what kind of racing we will have," he concluded.

Max Verstappen and other drivers will be back in action for the Sprint sessions on Saturday.