Mohammed Ben Sulayem stated that if Max Verstappen decides to say goodbye to Formula 1, he will be missed. However, the FIA president believes that the four-time champion is not going anywhere.
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The Red Bull driver has made his dissatisfaction with the 2026 season regulations clear and has cast doubt on his continuation in the category if things do not change.
The head of the governing body emphasized that no driver is bigger than Formula 1, seeing that so many stars have said goodbye in recent years. “Formula 1 is bigger than all of us. Presidents come and go; teams come and go; promoters come and go; drivers come and go,” he said.
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“I just met him and he was positive. When you are winning and suddenly you are not anymore, of course you express yourself, and I understand that. It is the cycle of things. He won [the title] four times, and what did other people say when he was winning?” he continued.
“Now I hear Toto [Wolff] telling me: ‘Everyone is against me,’ and I replied: ‘Yes, but everyone was against Christian [Horner] in his time.’ It is the cycle of life. People say things, but do they really believe it? If he leaves, we will miss him, but the sport will go on. So many stars and teams have come and gone, but Formula 1 will always be there, and so will the FIA,” he concluded.
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