Max Verstappen reveals how he found out about Albon's promotion

Max Verstappen has revealed he knew about the decision to switch Alex Albon and Pierre Gasly at Red Bull so he was therefore not surprised when the official announcement was made.

Albon will replace Pierre Gasly at Red Bull from the Belgian Grand Prix this weekend with the Frenchman dropping down to Toro Rosso for the remainder of the season. The move was revealed that it would determine who would partner undoubted number one, Max Verstappen next season.

The Dutchman has now revealed he knew about the plan before he went on holiday over the summer break.

He said at the press conference ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix: "They told me when I was in the simulator before my vacation. So it no longer came as a surprise to me."

Verstappen also dispelled the idea that being his teammate is a poisoned chalice. Last season Daniel Ricciardo left Red Bull over the matter of Verstappen being the number one and it now appears the standard Max is setting may have affected Gasly's performance due to the pressure.

The Dutchman added: “Everyone is just doing their best, right? I don't know what else to say about that."