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Formula 1 world champion Max Verstappen has reportedly agreed a new long-term Red Bull contract worth up to €50million a year.
Verstappen won his first world title in 2021 after a controversial end to the season in Abu Dhabi, where he took advantage of a late safety car and one-lap restart to use fresh soft tyres to pass rival Lewis Hamilton.
After the race, Verstappen professed his “love” for Red Bull and said: “There’s no reason to change ever. I want to stay with them for the rest of my life. I hope they let me.”
Verstappen’s Red Bull contract was due to expire at the end of 2023 but it was expected he would sign a new one before the start of the 2022 season.
That is now believed to have been done, with De Telegraaf in the Netherlands reporting the deal, which may be confirmed this week, could be worth €50m over at least four seasons – indicating it will run at least to the end of 2025.
Verstappen has been with Red Bull since part-way through his rookie car racing season in European Formula 3 in 2014.
He picked the Red Bull young driver programme because it was able to promise an immediate route into F1 and he made his F1 debut the following year, aged just 17, with Toro Rosso.
Verstappen has driven for Red Bull since famously winning the 2016 Spanish Grand Prix on his first start for the team.
Last year’s title success made him Red Bull’s second world champion after Sebastian Vettel and ended a run of seven seasons without a championship.
Red Bull technical chief Adrian Newey hailed Verstappen as “the real deal” and “right up there” with the very best drivers in F1 history.
He said after the 2021 season finale: “He’s just so easy to work with, there’s no pretence, he just comes in and gets on with it. I love the guy. He’s amazing.
“He’s aggressive, generally very fair, has such talent, such drive, still so young and on a steep learning curve.”
