Oscar Piastri responds to Max Verstappen quit threat over F1 2026 rules

McLaren driver Oscar Piastri says it “would be a big loss” if Red Bull’s Max Verstappen quits Formula 1 over his frustration with the F1 2026 rules.

And he believes it would not be “a great look” for the sport to lose the driver he considers “the benchmark.”

Oscar Piastri: Max Verstappen exit would not be ‘a great look’ for F1

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Verstappen has been the most fierce critic of the F1 2026 rules among the drivers having likened the new-look Formula 1 to “Formula E on steroids” during pre-season testing in Bahrain.

The Red Bull driver, who won four consecutive world championships between 2021 and 2024, admitted at the last race in Japan that his unhappiness with the situation could force him to consider his future in the sport.

The FIA announced a number of tweaks to the F1 2026 rules on Monday with the changes set to come into effect at next weekend’s Miami Grand Prix.

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The move came just days after Verstappen warned that any changes will do little to improve a set of rules he regards as “fundamentally wrong” for Formula 1.

Speaking to PlanetF1.com and other media outlets on Wednesday, Piastri said that it would cast F1 in a poor light if a driver as gifted as Verstappen chooses to race elsewhere.

Piastri said: “It would be a shame if that does end up happening.

“Clearly, the Red Bull doesn’t look like the most competitive car at the moment, but I think the regulations are… they’re obviously being worked on, but they’ve needed quite a lot of work and they’re certainly more complex.

“I think it would be a shame for the sport to lose Max, especially at this point in his career as well.

“I think it would be a big loss for the sport as a whole.

“I think for us, as drivers, we want to race against the best and try and prove ourselves against the best.

“I think Max has shown his calibre in the last 10 years and I think, especially the last five or six, he’s been the benchmark.

“So I think for everyone it would be a pretty big shame and obviously not a great look.”

After failing to start the opening two races of the new season in Australia and China, Piastri secured McLaren’s first podium finish of F1 2026 by coming home second at Suzuka.

Piastri joined calls for refinements to the F1 2026 rules after the race in Japan, which was marred by a terrifying 50G accident involving Haas driver Oliver Bearman.

Appearing in the post-race press conference, Piastri said he also had a “pretty close call” in Friday practice when he was handed an official warning for impeding the Audi of Nico Hulkenberg.

Claiming that Hulkenberg had caught him “three times” faster than expected on the approach to 130R as a result of the new energy demands, Piastri said: “I think we understand as a sport there’s a lot of things we need to tweak, a lot of things we need to change.

“And especially on safety grounds, yes, there’s some things that need to be looked into pretty quickly.”

The rule tweaks for Miami have been targeted at reducing energy management requirements as well as addressing safety concerns at race starts and in wet conditions.

Additional reporting by Thomas Maher

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