The Latest Breaking News from Red Bull

Verstappen retired in the opening stages of the last race in Melbourne after his brakes overheated – with it appearing that the pad had jammed on to the disc because of an issue related to the caliper.

The Red Bull driver followed the red flag-enforced hiatus, produced by Logan Sargeant's crash, with a hot lap on soft tyres that eventually landed on a 1m30.056s to throw down the gauntlet for the rest of the weekend.

The Spaniard appeared set to re-sign with Ferrari, but management then became aware that Lewis Hamilton was potentially available - the Briton's latest two-year Mercedes contract actually only containing a fixed one-year term with an option for another season.

The Silverstone-based squad has been in the chasing pack behind Red Bull this season, but its prospects of putting up a better fight against Ferrari and McLaren have been hurt by its car not being as competitive in races as it is in qualifying thanks to tyre management struggles.

Lewis Hamilton has backed Sebastian Vettel to make a return to Formula One by stepping in to replace him at Mercedes when the British driver moves to Ferrari

In the two months since news broke that Hamilton will leave Mercedes after 12 seasons to join Ferrari next year, the instability engulfing Red Bull F1 management has placed Max Verstappen and Silver Arrows protégé Andrea Kimi Antonelli at the top of the shortlist to replace the Briton.

The WRC is at a critical crossroads as it strives for growth – in terms of manufacturers competing and widening its fanbase – to realise its huge potential. When it comes to spectacular motorsport, few can rival what the WRC can deliver thanks to the superhuman talents that tackle the…

This year’s race takes place on 7 April at 1:00am ET at Suzuka, and the time difference means some late nights and early starts for the American audience across the weekend. 

Red Bull’s ongoing saga appears to be unsettling the paddock with a potential driver reshuffle on the cards