"If we continue like this..." Max Verstappen doubts his title chances in 2025

Transition season before the new regulations of 2026, will 2025 be the year of all dangers for Max Verstappen ? Four-time reigning world champion, the Dutchman forged his 2024 title with an irresistible first half of the season, with seven victories in ten races. 

If he managed to manage his lead to the point of being champion at Les Vegas, two rounds before the end of the season, the domination of Red Bull eroded as the season progressed, to the point of no longer being the best car on the grid at the end of the year. Proof, if proof were needed, was the loss of the Constructors' title, a ranking where the Austrian team had to settle for third place behind McLaren et Ferrari.

The Milton Keynes team will have to tackle a studious winter if it wants to make up for lost time in 2025, at the risk of also seeing the Drivers' World Championship crown head to Woking or Maranello. If we continue like this, I won't become champion next year. It's as simple as that. We really have to make an effort to be competitive next season. We all know that, Verstappen said in the columns of the Dutch media De Telegraaf. I am confident that the team can solve the balance issues from last season. And some things that we were unable to adjust last year will be changed for next year. We know that we need to do better on the kerbs, the bumps and in the slow corners. These are usually our weaknesses. If we are defeated again, it will be on the basis of pure speed. »

The difficulties encountered in the second part of the season did not destabilize the champion. I learned a lot from my experience this year, admits Verstappen. Stay calm, don't rush things, communicate well with the team and keep working hard. That's the main thing for me. In 2021, there was a lot more pressure for me and the team. We faced Mercedes, a team that had dominated for so long, and I was able to compete for a championship for the first time. Lewis Hamilton and I finished first and second in almost every race. It could have gone either way. This year there was maybe a bit more drama within the team, but sportingly it was a bit more stressful. »

Verstappen himself helped get his team back on track despite the headwinds. At one point I saw some graphs when we were looking at the data, explains the pilot of the n°1. I noticed some aerodynamic changes in the way we were entering corners and also in the ride height. It was different from last year's car. I said, "Hey, isn't it really obvious that this is the problem?" I then said that it was clear what we needed to work on, because the engineers obviously know exactly what has been adjusted compared to last year's car. At the beginning of the season, we won our races convincingly, but I already felt that the balance of the car was not as I wanted it to be. However, we still had a considerable lead over other teams, who might not have had a very good winter. »

A winter that will be decisive in the fight for the 2025 world titles, both in Milton Keynes and among the other manufacturers.

ALSO READ > Verstappen expects 'a real battle between many teams' in 2025