Aston is enticing Verstappen with the highest salary ever in F1.

No less than one billion pounds - the British press has leaked a truly astonishing contract, which is still in the unbelievable category, even if Max Verstappen would not receive all of this in a single season.

The news mentions an annual salary of 200 million dollars, which in itself is an absolute record; no one has ever earned this much in Formula 1 in a single season. The paper also suggests that the contract draft is long-term and embellished with high bonuses.
They say that Aston Martin is taking the matter so seriously that their CEO, Jefferson Slack, is already using the card in sponsorship negotiations that "if they manage to acquire Max Verstappen..."

Aston Martin, of course, denies everything; their official stance is a rigid denial that they are not looking for a new driver. Of course. Just as they weren't looking for Adrian Newey either, and when it turned out they were, they didn't play the same game there either. Oh, but! It's worth considering what happens if, say, Red Bull Racing goes off the rails with developments in 2025 without Newey, while things straighten out at Aston.

We'll leave the rest to your imagination...