Damon Hill believes Max Verstappen could take a sabbatical from Formula 1 if his frustration with the sport’s current direction continues to grow.
Despite being only 28, Verstappen is already one of the most experienced drivers on the grid. The Red Bull star has spent 11 seasons in F1, winning four world championships and 71 races, but his long-term future has become one of the biggest talking points of the 2026 season.
The Dutchman has made no secret of his dislike for the new regulations, which introduced revised power units and chassis rules. The larger battery element has created issues with “superclipping”, forcing drivers to lift off the throttle to avoid running out of electrical energy and losing track position.
Verstappen has also criticised the new racing style, which has seen drivers trade position repeatedly during laps with the help of battery deployment and the overtake button that replaced DRS. During pre-season testing in Bahrain, he described the new cars as “Formula E on steroids”.
His mood has not been helped by Red Bull’s own performance issues. The RB22 has struggled against Mercedes and McLaren, with reports suggesting it is significantly overweight, while both Verstappen and teammate Isack Hadjar have found the car difficult to extract performance from.
So far in 2026, Verstappen has yet to finish on the podium and sits seventh in the drivers’ championship, 74 points behind leader Kimi Antonelli, who won last time out in Miami.
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Hill says Verstappen may need time away
Speaking in an exclusive interview with Total-Motorsport.com, the 1996 F1 world champion Hill said Verstappen’s achievements and long service in the sport could make motivation harder to sustain if winning no longer feels realistic.
“He’s [Verstappen] had a phenomenal amount of success in a very short space of time, or at least up to the ages that he is at the moment,” Hill exclusively told Total-Motorsport.com. “He’s been right on it from the word go, and when he first arrived in Formula 1, he was very young, so he’s been around for quite a long time now.
“You need motivation. It’s not good just being there when you’ve won as much as he has, and not having that spice that you need, that little bit of adrenaline that you get from knowing you could win.
“If that goes, I could see him maybe saying, ‘OK, maybe I’ll take time out’, but he’s so young now, he could easily take a year out and come back, or bide his time and choose where he wants to place himself, and he could, I’m sure, very easily have the pick of the best team available.
“But it’s never a foregone conclusion. There is a degree of risk in predicting the future; it’s very difficult to know exactly where the future is.”
Verstappen has already shown interest in other disciplines, particularly GT3 racing. He competed in the NLS series at the Nurburgring Nordschleife and later entered the Nurburgring 24 Hours, where he raced with Lucas Auer, Jules Gounon and Dani Juncadella.
The quartet led for much of the race before a technical issue ended their victory hopes, but Verstappen appeared energised by the challenge of endurance racing and the chance to drive without the same battery management demands.
Could a break help Verstappen rediscover F1 motivation?
History shows that a sabbatical does not have to end a driver’s elite career. Alain Prost and Niki Lauda both stepped away from Formula 1 before returning to win again, including further world championships.
For Hill, a similar pause could help Verstappen reset if his relationship with F1 continues to deteriorate.
“But, he might decide he needs a break,” added Hill. “Sometimes a year off to go and think about it is worthwhile. Because it makes you realise how much you really love it and want to keep doing it.”
That is the uncertainty now hanging over Red Bull. Verstappen remains contracted, still fast enough to be coveted by every major team, and young enough to step away without closing the door on a return.
But if F1 continues to move in a direction he does not enjoy, and if Red Bull cannot give him a car capable of fighting at the front, the idea of a sabbatical may become more than just speculation.
