Red Bull 'postpone' 2026 driver decision

Red Bull

Red Bull 'postpone' 2026 driver decision

Red Bull's 2026 driver lineup remains undecided

Sheona Mountford F1 Journalist

Motorsport journalist working in F1 since 2024.

Tuesday 28 October 2025 10:56

Red Bull have postponed their 2026 F1 driver lineup decision, which had originally meant to be made after the Mexican Grand Prix.

Eight out of 11 F1 teams have announced their driver pairings for next season, with just Red Bull, Racing Bulls and Alpine the only remaining teams yet to make a decision.

Red Bull have long been deliberating who will drive next to Max Verstappen in 2026, with the team initially expected to come to a decision after last weekend’s Mexican GP.

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However, Red Bull have been so focused on Verstappen’s title resurgence, with the champion now within 36 points of Lando Norris, that they have delayed the decision until the end of the season.

Speaking to Sky Sports Germany after the Mexican GP, Red Bull executive Helmut Marko confirmed: "We're postponing the driver decision until the end of the season.

"The decision on the Racing Bulls drivers will also be postponed because the entire focus is on the world championship."

Who are the candidates to race at Red Bull in 2026?

Yuki Tsunoda, Isack Hadjar and Liam Lawson all emerged point-less from Sunday’s Mexican GP, with the three drivers' performances under scrutiny as they vie for a spot on the 2026 grid.

Thus far, Hadjar is the favourite to claim the second seat alongside Verstappen, bolstered by a podium finish in Zandvoort and his two rivals being unable to perform in the Red Bull seat this year.

Tsunoda and Lawson are not secure in their seats at Racing Bulls either, with youngsters such as Arvid Lindblad and Alex Dunne also gunning for a chance in F1.

Lindblad replaced Verstappen during FP1 at the Mexican GP, where the Brit set the sixth fastest time and crucially finished ahead of Tsunoda, who only managed P8.

Speaking to Sky Sports F1 during the Mexican GP weekend, Racing Bulls team principal Alan Permane claimed five drivers were in contention for the Red Bull seat in 2026.

"There's five drivers," Permane explained. We know for sure Max won't be in our car. It’ll be two out of the other four, is what I would say at the moment. We are still looking at things.

"Both teams are in a reasonably tight constructors' battle, so us not talking about drivers for next year is helping that stability."

Helmut Marko Mexican Grand Prix