Former Red Bull team advisor Helmut Marko has admitted that Max Verstappen’s retirement from F1 seems like a real possibility. This retirement talk came into focus after F1’s first Bahrain preseason test in early February.

After two days of testing, Verstappen bluntly expressed the drawbacks in the new 2026 F1 regulations and cars. The increased electrical power in the new power units has produced an enhanced need for energy management at key points during a lap.

The four-time F1 champion highlighted that such management defies the point of a driver’s racecraft. Instead of going all out, drivers will need to use lower gears in corners, besides harvesting electrical energy under braking. Max Verstappen felt that this wasn’t “pure Formula 1” and also likened the new F1 cars to “Formula E on steroids.”

The Red Bull driver sounded so fed up with the new cars that questions about his potential retirement after the 2026 season popped up. Helmut Marko recently opined that Verstappen could indeed leave F1 to race in GT3 or the World Endurance Championship.

“It’s possible (retirement), but he’s still relatively young and could return to Formula 1 at some point ,” Marko told Kleine Zeitung (as quoted by Formulapassion). “I think there will definitely be a return to 8 or 10-cylinder engines sooner or later. These will then be powered by sustainable fuels, which will also eliminate the much-criticized issue of emissions.”

Max Verstappen had addressed the retirement possibility in an episode of the “Up to Speed” podcast released on February 19.

“I would say the current regulations are not helping the longevity of my career in Formula 1, let’s say like that,” said the Dutchman. “But it doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter. I’m very happy with my career anyway, already in Formula 1. I can easily leave it behind. I have a lot of other projects.”

“Who actually cares when you’re 60 or 70 years old if you have won four titles or 10 because you’re getting old, and I prefer to spend that with my family and really spend time with them before they are also not there anymore”, Verstappen added.

Helmut Marko makes a promising prediction for Max Verstappen’s 2026 F1 campaign

While the speculation about Max Verstappen’s retirement after the 2026 season could continue, the four-time champion still has to race in F1 this year. He is under contract with Red Bull, which has reportedly produced reliable engines with Ford, and is still a part of the “Big 4” teams.

With F1 undergoing a full regulations reset, theoretically, all drivers and teams start on a level playing field. However, those with a bigger mental bandwidth will have an edge, considering the variables they will encounter with the new energy management requirement and overtaking systems.

Helmut Marko feels this is where Max Verstappen will have an edge. In the aforementioned interview, the retired Red Bull chief said:

“He drives and thinks with the same speed. Since energy management will be fundamental, he will be able to maximize this aspect and take full advantage of it.”

The 2026 F1 season kicks off this weekend with the Australian Grand Prix from March 6 to 8. Verstappen has won the race once in 2023 and finished runner-up to reigning champion Lando Norris last year.