Max Verstappen’s camp ‘blocked Carlos Sainz to Red Bull’ as F1 insiders share details | F1 | Sport
Max Verstappen’s inner circle reportedly did not want Carlos Sainz to return to Red Bull before they hired Liam Lawson. The Dutchman has grown unhappy about the instability within the team after Lawson was brutally axed by Helmut Marko, head of their driver programme, after just two races of the Formula One season. The New Zealand racer, 22, will be replaced by Yuki Tsunoda for the Japanese Grand Prix in a week’s time, with Lawson demoted to the Racing Bulls team alongside Isack Hadjar. Verstappen was keen for Lawson to stay and even ‘liked’ a post that accused Red Bull of treating their young driver poorly.
According to the Daily Mail, Verstappen is ‘less than happy’ with Lawson’s exit from the parent team and thinks the treatment of the Kiwi was ‘too harsh’. The report cites a source close to the team who described the ‘chaos’ that has unfolded within the team. However, the four-time world champion may have had a part to play in the driver changes before Lawson was brought in. The report adds that Verstappen not only harboured doubts about Tsunoda joining as his team-mate, he was also concerned about reuniting with Carlos Sainz at Red Bull.
The pair were team-mates at Toro Rosso in 2015 in their respective rookie seasons, with Verstappen 17 at the time and Sainz arriving in the sport with a reputation to live up to due to his father’s exploits in rallying. That led to a fierce rivalry between the pair, and when Verstappen was hired by Red Bull only a few months into his second season, Sainz was left behind before joining Renault.
Some figures within the Austrian team were interested in hiring the Spaniard after he was cut by Ferrari to make way for Lewis Hamilton for the 2025 season. But Verstappen’s camp firmly opposed the idea as Max’s father, Jos, ‘did not get on’ with Carlos Snr. And Sainz eventually joined Williams on a multi-year deal.
That left Red Bull with limited choices for their driver lineup and decided to promote Lawson over Tsunoda to fill the void left by Sergio Perez. Now the pair have already swapped around, Marko has insisted there will be no more changes for the rest of the season.
Beyond that, Verstappen’s future is far from certain with the Milton Keynes-based outfit. With Mercedes refusing to cool their interest, Red Bull will be eager not to rock the boat with their star driver – although it appears the team are threatening to split down the middle for the second time in the space of 12 months.
