Ex-Red Bull chief insists Max Verstappen 'looking at' TWO F1 teams as exit options

Former Red Bull head of operations Richard Hopkins has said that F1 champion Max Verstappen may be looking at a couple of options for 2027.

Four-time champion Verstappen has opted to stay with Red Bull for the 2026 season, finally putting rumours of a Mercedes switch to bed in the summer with a statement of his intent.

Since then, the Dutchman has got his head down and has managed to worm his way into the championship fight, with he and McLaren's two racers battling it out for 2025 glory.

Verstappen has won five grands prix this season despite the limitations of his RB21 being clear for all to see, and that has led to suggestions that he will look to leave Red Bull if they fail to give him a car capable of challenging for the championship in 2026.

Now, as well as Mercedes, Hopkins has suggested that there are two more options that Verstappen will be looking at if he seeks to jump ship ahead of the 2027 campaign.

"Max will definitely be looking at options," Hopkins told Express Sport. "Ferrari is probably one.

"People go there for the glory and glamour, but if Ferrari were winning championships and Lewis was finishing third while Charles was fighting, that would make it a different kind of motivation - not just prestige, but joining the best team.

"Aston Martin is a different proposition. There’s still a lot of belief in Adrian Newey’s ability, not just to design amazing cars but to build amazing teams around him. That’s what Adrian does - he builds cultures of belief.

"I wouldn’t have done what I did at Red Bull without Adrian. He was instrumental in me going there."

Will Verstappen join Aston Martin?

The links between Verstappen and Aston Martin have been almost as prevalent as rumours linking the Dutchman with Mercedes.

Aston Martin have constantly reiterated that they will be sticking with Lance Stroll and Fernando Alonso until the end of their current contracts in 2026, but after that, their driver lineup looks less clear.

By then, two-time champion Alonso will be 45 years of age, and the team have expressed their ambitions of becoming world champions in the near future, which would attract Verstappen.

On top of this, design legend Newey is behind the project, a man whose capabilities are well known to Verstappen given that he claimed four championships while driving Newey-designed cars at Red Bull.

Strictly speaking, Verstappen is contracted with Red Bull until the end of 2028, but there are thought to be exit clauses present in that contract.

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