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Windsor advises Verstappen: 'That will end in tears eventually!'
Former F1 team and sponsorship manager and now F1 journalist Peter Windsor has advised Max Verstappen to not join Aston Martin for the money, as that could "end in tears," after the rumours that the Dutchman had been offered a mammoth £1 billion contract by the British team to prise him away from Red Bull Racing.
Verstappen earned his fourth consecutive drivers' world title in 2024, showing why he is the best driver on the grid. But with many key departures from the Austrian team last season, it was by no means an easy ride, with some sublime drives in a difficult RB20 the reason why he took title number four.
One of those key departures was master designer Adrian Newey leaving Red Bull after the Miami Grand Prix, joining Aston Martin a few months later. The British team have made many high-profile and expensive moves to try and get to the front of the grid, and in January, a rumour emerged that Verstappen had been offered a billion-pound mega deal. Aston Martin themselves denied this rumour, and when GPblog asked people around Verstappen about the rumour, the response was 'That's nice'.
Windsor has advice for Verstappen on Aston Martin
Speaking on the Cameron Cc podcast, Windsor was asked, if he were in Verstappen's shoes, whether he would take the chance at Aston Martin: "I wouldn't, no, because I've enjoyed my racing, and I know what I need around me to go well and to drive well, and I like the atmosphere that I create around myself, and I wouldn't want to go to a team where, quite obviously, it's a very difficult, stressful atmosphere, as per a lot of the people who have been there and then left. So no, I wouldn't.
"I'd like to think that Max is mature enough now, and he's got enough money, to say it's not about money, it's about enjoying my life and getting on with my racing, and that's when I drive at my best, and I'm not driving just for the money. And I like to think that Max would think that if that guy wants to pay me that much money, then there's something wrong if he needs to do that," the analysis continued.
Windsor was then asked if he would do it now that the continued success at Red Bull has decreased quite rapidly, among other factors at the Austrian team: "Well, that may be, that may not be, but that's a different question. If Adrian Newey was saying to Max, 'Look Max, I'm going to be in this... I love it here, I'm going to be in it for the next 10 years. I can tell you now, we're going to win a lot of races. If you want to join us, we're going to win a lot of races, a lot of championships, let's go.' If I were Max, I'd probably do it.
"But the first question was about would I do it for the billion dollars to work for Lawrence Stroll. Two different things. And also, don't forget, if you took the first one, the 1 billion and the Lawrence Stroll, there's no guarantee Adrian's going to be there for the next decade. He is not getting any younger. But not for the money, that's the point I'm making. I think Max is bright enough and has been around long enough to know that that's the way to do it, how to go motor racing with the right people, away from huge, ridiculous sums of money, which inevitably always end in tears," concluded Windsor.
This article was created in collaboration with Cas van de Kleut
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