Is Verstappen's threat to quit a lever to alter rules? - F1 Q&A
There were plenty of talking points from the Japanese Grand Prix, where Mercedes' Kimi Antonelli won to become the youngest championship leader in Formula 1 history. Meanwhile, Red Bull's Max Verstappen told BBC Sport he is considering leaving the sport at the end of the season because he is unhappy with its new rules. After the race at Suzuka, F1 will have a five-week break because the conflict in the Middle East caused the cancellations of the Bahrain and Saudi Arabia Grands Prix .
BBC F1 correspondent Andrew Benson answers your latest questions. How much is Max Verstappen's threat to leave merely a lever to persuade F1 bosses to alter the rules more to his liking? - Dave It would be unwise to view Verstappen's remarks to BBC 5 Live pit-lane reporter Jennie Gow after the Japanese Grand Prix as primarily intended as leverage.
Verstappen would like F1 to change the rules, but that is because he has a fundamental, almost primal, objection to what they have done to the cars. The Red Bull driver is talking from the heart. He has been saying similar things not just since the start of this season, but since he first tried the 2026 cars in the simulator a couple of years ago.
He does not like the way the power tails off in the later part of straights as the electrical motor runs out of power and starts to regenerate energy. On the more energy-starved tracks, he does not like the way drivers have to lift and coast before braking to recover energy in qualifying. This has been commonplace in races for many years, it should be pointed out.
Because both these situations reduce the terminal speed of a car before the driver starts the corner-entry phase of braking and turning - which is the core test for a racing driver - they also reduce the challenge. And in some cases, they are reducing the demands of high-speed corners, as they are being used to recover. He does not like the artificiality of the racing with the overtake mode and boost buttons.