By Alan Baldwin
ZANDVOORT, Netherlands, Aug 20 (Reuters) - Max Verstappen signed a contract extension with Red Bull to the end of 2030 on Thursday, ending speculation about the four-time world champion's near-term Formula One future.
The 28-year-old already had a contract to the end of 2028 but with break clauses offering a potential way out should the team fail to meet his expectations and provide a winning car.
Such performance-related clauses were believed to have been triggered this season, according
to Dutch media reports.
Red Bull lie fourth overall this season, and Verstappen sixth, 110 points behind Mercedes' Kimi Antonelli, after 11 races and ahead of his home grand prix this weekend.
LINKED TO MERCEDES AND MCLAREN
The Dutch driver had been linked in media reports to both McLaren, who have signed his race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase from 2028 at the latest, and championship leaders Mercedes.
"I am really pleased with the contract extension," Verstappen, who joined Red Bull's junior programme in 2014 and has won all his titles with the team, said in a team statement.
"We have the best people and I'm excited to keep working together with everyone to get back to the top again. This remains the ultimate goal that all of us have been working towards and will continue to pursue.
"I have always said it: The team is like a second family for me and I feel very at home ... to continue this journey with the same Team that I have been with my whole career is really special and something I have always wanted to do."
Team boss Laurent Mekies said very few partnerships in sport had achieved what Verstappen and Red Bull had, and the extension was rooted in trust.
"Since the very beginning, Max has embodied everything that makes Oracle Red Bull Racing special: uncompromising competitiveness, relentless determination and the courage to challenge convention," said the Frenchman.
"His impact on our team and on Red Bull's motorsport story has been transformational, and he has been fundamental to everything we have accomplished together.
"But we are not done yet. There are more races to win, more milestones to achieve and more history to write."
(Additional reporting by Suramya Kaushik in Bengaluru; Editing by Toby Chopra and Alexander Smith)
