The epic team-mate rivalry we now won't get

Red Bull may have been slightly disappointed to have seen Max Verstappen miss out on winning the Hungarian Grand Prix, but second place did at least ensure one thing: the Dutchman is now guaranteed to be staying put for 2020.

After months of speculation that Verstappen could drop a driver market bombshell and activate an exit clause he had in his contract, word in the Hungaroring paddock was that his result was enough to close off that avenue beyond all doubt.

The suggestion - not denied by Red Bull's motorsport advisor Helmut Marko - was that Verstappen had the right to walk away if he was not in the top three of the drivers' championship by the summer break.

On Sunday night, his 18 points for second plus a bonus one for fastest lap, allied to Sebastian Vettel finishing behind him, ensured that Verstappen was exactly where Red Bull wanted him to be.

Team boss Christian Horner did not want to elaborate on the contractual details, but he was adamant that Verstappen was going nowhere.

"Bits of paper are confidential between the driver and the team but you can rest assured that Max will be driving with Red Bull next year," he said.

If a driver of Verstappen's calibre becomes available, no team - Mercedes included - would sit back and miss the chance to take on a superstar like him

While the situation is great news for Red Bull, and ultimately good for F1 if we have more Verstappen versus Lewis Hamilton battles like their Hungarian GP duel, it has closed off (for now, at least) the prospect of what could have a box office spectacle of having the pair of them in the same team. If you thought the Ayrton Senna/Alain Prost years at McLaren were intense, then this would have been off the scale.

It's hard to believe right now, after a run of four races where Verstappen has taken two wins, a pole position and scored more points than any other driver, but the period in the build-up to the Austrian GP at the end of June had been a nervous one for Red Bull where the fear of losing him was very real.

Its switch to Honda had proved well judged based on the progress made by the engine manufacturer, but things had not been as good as had been hoped on the chassis front.

The changes of front-wing rules for 2019, aimed at boosting overtaking, hurt Red Bull in particular. One of the team's strengths in recent years has been brilliantly manipulating the airflow off the front wing to help the car produce as much downforce as possible.

But the simpler 2019 wing rules made things more difficult for the team, and it took a while for it to catch up in terms of understanding what the best approach to the front wing should be, and how best to balance its car.

It was an updated wing concept introduced at the Red Bull Ring that marked the eureka moment in changing the feel and performance of the car, and since then it has been onwards and upwards.

Had that not happened, then the worries that Marko expressed on the eve of the Austria weekend, when he openly said there were concerns about Verstappen seeking pastures new if his team's form did not improve, could have become reality.

That could have opened up something truly tantalising; if a driver of Verstappen's calibre becomes available, no team would sit back and miss the opportunity to take on a superstar like him - Mercedes included.

At a time when Mercedes is facing a headache over whether to retain Valtteri Bottas or take Esteban Ocon instead, a Verstappen option would almost certainly have trumped them both.

On the plus side, it would ensure that, with Hamilton contracted for another year, Mercedes would have by far the best driver line-up on the grid. That would not only be important for results in keeping the team right at the front of the grid, but would also re-energise its image too.

The team's dominance at the start of the current season, when it won the opening eight races, set some alarm bells ringing as Mercedes chiefs had to respond to accusations that it was making F1 boring.

Part of that problem was fuelled by the fact that the battles between Hamilton and Bottas had not been intense thrillers - often, they were decided by the outcome of qualifying or the dash away from the lights. There was little edge to their rivalry, too, as the kind of friction that stirred up interest during the Hamilton/Rosberg years simply has not existed since Bottas joined the team.

"At the moment I see stories that because we have different cars that's the only way [I beat him], but this gives me the opportunity to show you that's not the case" Hamilton on the prospect of partnering Verstappen

A Verstappen/Hamilton partnership would likely not be so calm. Teams often struggle to cope when they have two alpha males on board, and you can be sure the intensity of the competition between the two would lead to some flashpoints - both on track and off it.

Verstappen is never afraid to let his true feelings be known, and Hamilton often wears his heart on his sleeve. As their rivalry developed, amid the intense scrutiny of their armies of loyal followers, there would have been some truly memorable moments. But while that would have give Toto Wolff some headaches, it would have been unmissable for fans and helped lift F1 into a period of unparalleled drama.

It is probably something that neither Verstappen nor Hamilton would have been against, either. Verstappen has no doubts about his own abilities, and would happily take on anyone as long as he was assured of equal status.

For Hamilton, the arrival of a super-fast youngster alongside him would offer fresh motivation, and give him reason to dig even deeper in his bid to stay on top. It would be just like how the experienced Prost responded to the arrival of the fiery younger Senna when they got together in 1988.

Asked about the idea of being in the same team as Verstappen, Hamilton said: "I'd honestly have no problem with it. As I said before, I like working with Valtteri and I don't know how that [Hamilton/Verstappen] dynamic would work for the team.

"I'm not saying it would or would not [work] - I see positives and potential negatives. Obviously there are always positives and negatives to people that you're working with, but I have no particular opinion towards it. In some ways it works out for me. At the moment I see stories that it's because we have different cars and that's the only way [I beat him], but this gives me the opportunity to show you that's not the case."

For now though, having Hamilton and Verstappen alongside each other is not happening - and the scale of their rivalry in the short term will very much depend on how their two teams progress from here on in.

But it is definitely a never say never situation. Both men are only interested in winning, and as F1 gravitates to a new era in 2021 - with neither under contract after the end of next year - what chance they end up at the same place, whether that be Milton Keynes, Brackley or Maranello? Bring it on.