MAX VERSTAPPEN and Lewis Hamilton will battle it out for F1 title glory this year.
Max Verstappen has reportedly signed a bumper new contract with Red Bull that puts him in the same pay bracket as Lewis Hamilton. The 24-year-old’s stock has never been higher than now after he secured the first F1 title of his career back in December. And he’s now poised to race for Christian Horner’s team until he’s 30, having committed to fresh terms.
Verstappen beat Hamilton to the F1 championship in December, with controversy allowing the Red Bull star to reign supreme.
And, now, the Daily Mail say the Dutchman has renewed his contract with his current team.
It’s stated the 24-year-old has already signed a new deal believed to be worth a staggering £40million a year, putting him alongside Hamilton in the sport’s salary standings in the process.
It’s claimed Verstappen recently visited the team’s factor in Milton Keynes on Tuesday to die up the ‘last threads’ of the extension after committing to the terms during pre-season testing in Barcelona.
The Red Bull star has now panned a ‘multi-year arrangement on top of his existing deal’, making it one of the most lucrative contract extensions in Formula One history.
Red Bull have, so far, refused to confirm the news.
Yet a source is quoted as saying: “It has all been agreed.
“Max is staying for a long time, maybe even five years extra. It also equates to a substantial financial rise, virtually doubling his money.”
Billionaire owner Dietrich Mateschitz, as well as Horner and Helmut Marko, all wanted to reward Verstappen for his exploits last term.
The Dutchman, for his part, has a ‘mutual respect’ with the people he works with.
Verstappen had been tentatively linked with a sensational move to Mercedes, particularly when Hamilton’s future was up in the air.
However, the controversy at the British Grand Prix last year means the Silver Arrows never stood a chance of poaching the sport’s newest champion from their rivals.
Verstappen is now gearing up towards the start of the new F1 season, which is due to commence in Bahrain in 18 days.
It will be his eighth season in the sport having made his debut at the age of 17 in the 2015 Australian Grand Prix for Toro Rosso.
Verstappen has been racing for Red Bull since 2016 and the publication claims a formal announcement over his extension will come later in the week.
Horner said earlier in the year that the team were hopeful he’d pen a new deal but insisted their relationship was ‘worth more than any piece of paper’.
“After all, for me, relationships are not just about the contract,” he said.
“Neither does Max. When he joined our team (in 2016), he was a boy.
“Now he’s a man. He grew up with our team. The relationship we share, the trust, that’s worth more than any piece of paper.”
Meanwhile, ahead of the new season, Verstappen has continued to reflect on December’s chaotic Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
He won the title in controversial circumstances after a safety car cost Hamilton and Mercedes the crown.
And Verstappen has now revealed what crossed his mind as the drama was unfolding.
Speaking on a documentary entitled ‘Verstappen: Lion Unleashed’, the Red Bull driver said: “He [Hamilton] didn’t expect me to overtake him there.
“We had less downforce that weekend so we had more top speed, so I wanted to be up front because without DRS I can defend.
Max Verstappen is out to beat Lewis Hamilton to F1 glory once again (Image: GETTY)
