Verstappen to get offer he can't refuse from Aston Martin-Honda?

Wednesday, 02 April 2025 at 09:58

As Formula 1 heads to Honda’s home turf at Suzuka for the Japanese Grand Prix, speculation still swirls that Max Verstappen could be the target of a massive bid from Aston Martin, who will be powered by the Japanese auto giant from 2026.

Lawrence Stroll, the Canadian billionaire owner of the team, is reportedly willing to spend big - up to a billion dollars - to bring Verstappen into the Aston Martin fold. Such a move would raise immediate questions over the futures of current drivers his 26-year-old son Lance Stroll and 43-year-old double F1 World Champion Fernando Alonso.

Verstappen remains under contract at Red Bull until the end of 2028, but exit clauses are sure to exist. With Honda maintaining a strong admiration for the four-time F1 world champion, and with Aston Martin already fishing in energy drink waters, only his signature remains to ink the deal into reality.

While Team Verstappen has played down the speculation, even keeping mum on the matter, should Max indeed make the switch, it would reunite him with legendary designer Adrian Newey, who is already shaping the AMR26 for Formula 1’s new regulations in 2026. And history shows, that in times like these, he tends to get a jump on rival engineers.

Montoya: Verstappen may switch if Red Bull struggle

Former F1 driver Juan Pablo Montoya believes a move is not only possible—it could come swiftly: “I think Max will get an offer he can’t refuse from Aston Martin,” said Montoya. “He might give Red Bull a year, and a chance for Adrian to figure it out. But Adrian can’t do that immediately—it’s a new group, and they all need to start working together.

“Are they going to be better than where they are next year? For sure. But I don't think they're going to start winning a string of races. If Red Bull struggles in year one, then it wouldn’t surprise me if by race three Max has already signed with somebody else.”

Montoya believes Aston Martin is the logical next step: “If I was Max, I would go to Aston. Mercedes would be cool too, but Aston would make more sense. Adrian and Honda are there. Everything he’s won with is there.”

If Verstappen were to sign with Aston Martin, team dynamics would face immediate upheaval. Fernando Alonso, now 43, recently extended his commitment to the team. Lance Stroll, however, is not only a driver but the son of the man financing the entire project.

Who gets dropped to make way for Max? Fernando or Lance?

Montoya addressed the dilemma: “Fernando would be pissed off to a point, but it’s the right choice. If you take Lance out of the equation, then you lose Lawrence. And if you lose Lawrence, you lose everything. You lose Aston Martin, and then there’s no Max coming.

“If they forced Lawrence to do that, I think he would say, ‘Okay, here’s the team. Over to you. Let’s just sell the team. I’m not interested," reckoned Montoya, amid the billionaire's team owner saying that he is committed to the project for the long term.

Interestingly, normally a critic of his fellow Canadian, 1997 F1 World Champion Jacques Villeneuve offered a more positive outlook on Stroll Junior’s development this season: “Lance Stroll is getting some good points for the team. It’s nice to see a change when a driver comes in with a better attitude. He seems to be in a much better space than last year.

“He seems more interested when he speaks to journalists too. Maybe he’s attacking the season with a different mindset, which was necessary. He’s in F1 and he will stay in F1, so he may as well be more competitive and happier to be there," added Villeneuve.

(Source: Vision4Sport)