MAX VERSTAPPEN has been sensationally tipped to QUIT Red Bull at the end of the season by a former team mechanic.
The Dutchman has won four drivers’ titles in a row and is hunting for a fifth this year – which would see him match a feat only achieved by Michael Schumacher in Formula One history.
Shutterstock EditorialMax Verstappen has been tipped to win a fifth F1 title and then call it quits[/caption]
GettyThe call comes from ex-Red Bull mechanic Calum Nicholas[/caption]
However, Verstappen has fallen 49 points behind championship leader Oscar Piastri amid huge performance struggles with the Red Bull machinery this season.
Verstappen has continued winning races despite the issues and even the power struggle which hit the team last year.
He has been linked with an exit from the Racing Bulls, with a team transfer to the likes of Mercedes or Aston Martin.
But ex-Red Bull mechanic Calum Nicholas believes Verstappen – who became a dad for the first time last month – could QUIT F1 entirely, if he wins a fifth World Drivers Championship.
Speaking on Lucas Stewart’s YouTube channel as he played a round of golf, Nicholas was asked how many titles Verstappen would win in his career.
He gave his answer before revealing what he thought lay ahead for the 27-year-old.
Nicolas said: “Five. I think Max is going to win the Drivers’ this year, and then I think he’s going to call it a day.”
Despite his answer, the mechanic insisted he didn’t “know anything” extra about Verstappen’s career plans.
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Nicholas added: “To not back Max is just like lunacy, I think. The guy is just really really good.
“Not in terms of just his technical skill and his talent, but I’ve watched Max grow into this guy that can do everything.
“He does everything well now.”
Verstappen’s last race win this season came at the Imola Grand Prix on May 18.
He finished fourth at the Monaco Grand Prix a week later before inexplicably ramming his car into George Russell at the Spanish Grand Prix.
That earned him a 10-second penalty – demoting him from P5 to P10 – and three penalty points on his licence to put him on the brink of a race ban.
Verstappen has 11 out of 12 points needed to earn a race ban across the 12-month rolling system for the penalty points.
He will need to be on his best behaviour at the Canadian and Austrian Grand Prix to avoid a ban in the following race before he sees two penalty points expire on June 30.
SunSport looked at five potential replacements for Verstappen if he is banned from competing for one weekend.
Names include impressive F1 rookie Isack Hadjar, Red Bull flop Liam Lawson and F2 prodigy Arvid Lindblad, who recently raced against Leeds United stars on the Elland Road pitch.
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