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'Focus on commentating' - Max Verstappen fires brutal put-down at Sky Sports F1 pundit

The Red Bull star's future was on the agenda ahead of this weekend's Saudi Arabia Grand Prix

Kevin McKenna

Thursday 17 April 2025 19:57

Max Verstappen has delivered a brutal put-down to one of Sky Sports' big-name pundits ahead of this weekend's Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

The Dutchman heads to Jeddah under a cloud of speculation over his Red Bull future, with team director Helmut Marko this week admitting he was 'concerned' that his star man could be eyeing up a departure.

Sky Sports F1 veteran David Croft addressed the matter at Thursday's pre-race press conference, asking the defending champion if his boss had 'got the wrong end of the stick'.

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And Verstappen was quick to put him in his place, as he responded: "I think [you] just focus on commentating, I'll focus on driving, and then you don't need to think about any other scenarios."

This isn't the first time that the four-time world champion has been linked with a move elsewhere, with Mercedes boss Toto Wolff previously admitting that he would be interested in exploring a deal as he weighed up candidates to replace Lewis Hamilton last year.

Verstappen's not focusing on long-term future

Verstappen has tasted victory just once in four outings so far this season, with that triumph coming at the Japanese GP earlier this month.

But that was followed up with a tough weekend in Bahrain last time out, where he laboured to a sixth-place finish - his worst result of the season so far.

Reflecting on his recent form ahead of round five, he admitted: "Naturally Bahrain wasn't a great week for us, I think we were all disappointed with that.

"We just keep on trying to improve the car, come up with new ideas. The competition is tough.

"That's how I go about my weeks - just trying to improve the situation."

Max Verstappen speaks about his Red Bull future following Helmut Marko's comments about his future 🗣️ pic.twitter.com/D8ryhbzZep
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) April 17, 2025

As things stand, Verstappen is currently third in the drivers' championship behind the McLaren duo of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, but despite his underwhelming start to the campaign, he remains within touching distance of both.

F1 HEADLINES: Max Verstappen Red Bull exit 'done' as McLaren 'approach' made

Red Bull Max Verstappen Helmut Marko Sky Sports Saudi Arabian Grand Prix David Croft