08/10/2020
NEWS STORY
Channelling his inner Phil Collins, Max Verstappen had admitted that he could feel Honda's departure from F1 was coming.
While last Friday's announcement from the Japanese manufacturer caught much of the F1 paddock by surprise, the Dutch youngster, who has won four Grands Prix since it joined forces with Red Bull, admits that he felt such an announcement was in the air.
"You could feel it coming," he told reporters at the Nurburgring. "Of course, you don't show it, but of course I also knew a little bit earlier than the announcement.
"I guess it's just a shame," he added, "but understandable from their side."
The youngster admits that the news came after he made a long-term commitment to Red Bull to 2023 in January this year, based on the new partnership with Honda, though he never took the relationship for granted.
"It definitely came after I signed the deal," he said. "But they never committed a lot longer, so you could expect something like this.
"You're never sure, and that's the same for teams as well," he added. "I mean you sign a deal with them, but who knows what is happening in five years’ time, right?
"It is what it is. To be honest, like I said, you could feel it coming. I mean, I guess the whole situation in the whole wide world is definitely not helping."
Of course, the news has left Red Bull - not for the first time - having to search for an engine supplier, its current options appearing severely limited.
"It's a shame," he sighed. "But you have to understand them, the reasons, and we just keep on pushing. That's also what they said.
"Of course they're going to pull out, but they're not just going to back off now. We just keep working together, because we have a great relationship. So it's really enjoyable to work with the guys.
"For the rest of the year we just keep on going and also for next year, introducing the new engine. You know, I'm very much looking forward to that as well, to just bring it to a good end and basically push until the last race."
Check out our Thursday gallery from the Nurburgring, here.