Laurent Mekies, the team principal of Red Bull Racing, has hinted that the outfit is already fielding inquiries from several "good drivers" who are curious about potential openings at the team in the coming years. Despite this external interest, Mekies is confident that Red Bull will continue to improve its performance enough to keep reigning champion Max Verstappen firmly in place. As the Formula 1 calendar heads toward its last race before the summer hiatus – the Hungarian Grand Prix at the Hungaroring – the question of Verstappen's long‑term future with Red Bull remains a hot topic. His current contract runs through the end of the 2028 season, but it contains performance‑related clauses that could allow him to exit at the conclusion of the 2024 campaign.
According to reports, the Dutch driver must give notice by October if he wishes to trigger that break clause. Last month, news broke that Verstappen's management had opened talks with McLaren. However, McLaren boss Zak Brown quickly clarified that his team already has its two drivers locked in – Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri – leaving little room for a high‑profile addition. Similarly, Mercedes and Ferrari have their driver line‑ups under contract, which further narrows Verstappen's short‑term alternatives should he decide to stay in the sport beyond 2024 but before his Red Bull deal expires.
Given the normal practice of top drivers' representatives scouting for options, Sky Sports F1 asked Mekies at the Belgian Grand Prix whether Red Bull itself was receiving approaches from other drivers on the grid. Mekies responded that the situation works both ways. "It's completely natural for Max to get calls from everyone because he's the best driver in the world," he said, adding that any leading team will inevitably hear from talented drivers looking for a seat. "If you are a top team, you will get calls from many good drivers as well.
That's just the nature of the sport." When pressed about whether these inquiries could distract the team, Mekies dismissed the notion. His focus, he explained, remains on extracting the maximum performance from the RB22 and retaining the strongest possible driver pairing.
He highlighted the rapid development of French rookie Isack Hadjar, who has been delivering solid results alongside Verstappen. "That partnership is ideal for us, and we are working hard to keep it together," Mekies affirmed. Mekies also expressed confidence that Red Bull will continue to close the remaining performance gap to the very front of the field. Since the introduction of a major aerodynamic upgrade at the Austrian Grand Prix three races ago, the team has shown a noticeable uptick in pace.
Verstappen has stood on the podium in two of the last three events, despite a frustrating spin at Silverstone caused by a rear‑wing failure. Meanwhile, Hadjar impressed by climbing from 21st on the grid to finish sixth in Belgium, marking his sixth consecutive top‑six finish. "All we need to do is keep progressing with the car," Mekies said.
He acknowledged that the season started with the RB22 about a second off the leading pace, a shortfall he attributed to the delayed title push in the previous year and the steep learning curve presented by the new power‑unit regulations. "We started on the back foot, but those guys have turned it around again. We were over a second behind, and now we are talking about the last two or three tenths for ultimate speed." Mekies explained that when a team is a full second off the leaders, both the drivers and the engineers feel frustration. "Max feels that frustration, and we know it's not the position we want to stay in," he noted.
The goal, according to the team principal, is to shave off those final tenths of a second – a task that demands relentless focus and coordination across the entire operation. The Red Bull organization has undergone a period of transition over the past two years, with several key figures from its championship‑winning era departing. Additionally, Verstappen's long‑time race engineer, Gianpiero Lambiase, is set to move to McLaren no later than 2028.
When asked how this turnover aligns with the ambition to retain Verstappen, Mekies offered a straightforward answer: "It all comes down to speed. Red Bull Racing has a single objective – to win – and that aligns perfectly with Max's own goal." He emphasized that the team does not need to convince Verstappen of its winning potential; the organization is already built around delivering victories. "It's the same group of people who orchestrated the incredible turnaround last year.
They have managed to erase nearly a second from our deficit to the competition, even though they weren't expected to perform that well early in the season," Mekies said. "Now we are in the hard part – chasing those last few tenths, which are the toughest to extract.
The key is to keep working as a united group, and that will produce the best results." Looking ahead, the Hungarian Grand Prix will be the next stage for Red Bull to test its progress. Every session will be broadcast live on Sky Sports F1, and fans can stream the coverage via NOW.
The race will serve as a crucial indicator of whether the team can continue to close the performance gap and maintain its dominance, while also providing a backdrop for the ongoing narrative surrounding Verstappen's future and the interest from other top drivers. In summary, while Red Bull is fielding inquiries from several promising drivers, the team's primary focus remains on car development, driver performance, and preserving the successful partnership between Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar. Mekies believes that with continued technical advancement and a unified team effort, Red Bull will stay at the forefront of the championship and keep its star driver motivated to stay put, even as contract clauses and external offers linger on the horizon.