{
  "id": 15159363,
  "title": "Did Max Verstappen already know the impact of Red Bull’s big upgrade when he signed his new deal?",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/17/did-max-verstappen-already-know-the-impact-of-red-bulls-big-upgrade",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-10-17T08:15:22.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Motorsport.com",
    "slug": "motorsport-com",
    "url": "https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/did-max-verstappen-already-know-the-impact-of-red-bulls-big-upgrade-when-he-signed-his-new-deal/10865786/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Max Verstappen's new deal with Red Bull was extended by two years despite the team's recent improvements in performance. The Dutch driver admitted that he did not anticipate the impact of Red Bull's big upgrade when he signed the new contract. Verstappen stated that the team's ideas about the team's future progress were appealing, but he did not think they needed to convince him with the Baku upgrade. Team principal Laurent Mekies emphasized that the contract extension was not based on the Baku package, but rather on the team's long-term confidence that Red Bull can continue to provide Verstappen with competitive machinery.",
  "summary": "While Max Verstappen was still seriously considering the possibility of ending this Formula 1 season without winning a single race at Monza, things now look considerably different. Verstappen came remarkably close to victory in Baku before actually coming out on top in the subsequent races of the triple-header in Malaysia and Singapore. It marks a huge contrast with the beginning of this ... Keep…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}