Max Verstappen forced to pay short of £1million to keep F1 seat for new season

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    Max Verstappen's F1 success has come at a cost as he faces paying a huge sum just to keep his seat for the 2023 season.

    The Dutchman will begin his quest for a third successive world title when the new campaign gets underway in Bahrain in less than a fortnight.

    It has emerged ahead of the opening race that Verstappen will pocket a leading salary of £45m from Red Bull for the season, a hefty £16m more than fierce rival Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes

    Verstappen romped to the world title in 2022 but his successful campaign means he is set to pay the most of the 22 drivers in the field in order to keep his Super Licence.

    READ MORE: Max Verstappen's girlfriend Kelly Piquet stuns F1 fans in lace-up bikini

    According to F1 journalist Vincenzo Landino, the cost of an F1 seat is around £9,200 but the sum increases considerably with each point scored at a race.

    It is reported that each point is worth an extra £1,850 for the following season. Of course, that is good news for new boys Logan Sargeant and Nico Hulkenberg and even Hamilton, who did not manage a single race win in 2022.

    But after winning 15 of the 22 races, Verstappen ended the season with an impressive 454 points. Not so impressive is the amount he now owes the FIA, a staggering £850,000.

    “I think the sum is absurd. I don’t think it’s right that we have to pay so much. That’s not the case in other sports either. And there are more and more races," he is quoted as saying by German publication Motorsport-Total.

    Fortunately for the 25-year-old, Red Bull chief Helmut Marko has indicated he won't have to pick up the tab and the team will cover his seat cost as well as teammate Sergio Perez's, worth £580,000.

    Who are you backing to win the 2023 F1 title? Let us know in the comments section.

    The outlay doesn't stop there for Red Bull, who once again claimed the Constructor's Championship in 2022. It is claimed they needed to reimburse £5.5m to race in 2023 thanks to their success on the track, with all teams paying a flat rate (£545,000) plus fees per point on top.

    The amount is not included in the cost-cap regulation that hit the headlines in the sport earlier this year, when Red Bull were found guilty of a breach.

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