Mercedes still an option? Max Verstappen ditches Red Bull entourage for Toto Wolff meeting

Four-time F1 champion Max Verstappen could be seen ditching his Red Bull entourage to pursue a chat with Toto Wolff during the weekend's Qatar Grand Prix.

In a clip from F1TV which caught the attention of fans on social media, Verstappen was captured walking through the pit lane with members of the Red Bull team, who he quickly abandoned after noticing Wolff.

The Mercedes boss approached Verstappen and the two then appeared to be locked in to deep conversation.

The clip was filmed following Friday's sprint qualifying in Lusail and left social media users flocking to the comments to demand the services of a lip reader, eager to know the contents of the pair's chat.

Is it suspicious for a team principal and a rival driver to be as animated as Wolff and Verstappen were when in conversation on a race weekend? Not necessarily. F1 is a relatively close-knit sport and these two in particular have a history of being friendly.

But the fact that just a few months ago, the Silver Arrows boss was publicly attempting to convince Verstappen to leave Red Bull and sign with Mercedes means the spotlight will forever be on the pair whenever they wish to stop and gossip in the pits!

Could Verstappen still move to Mercedes?

Verstappen put rumours of a potential move to Mercedes to rest when he finally confirmed that he would be staying with Red Bull for 2026 earlier this year.

But his future is still up in the air.

Wolff managed to nail down his driver duo of George Russell and Kimi Antonelli for next year, but the length of their contracts was not disclosed when the long-awaited announcement came.

Perhaps the Austrian F1 boss has not lost hope that he can convince a certain four-time champion to join his squad in the near future?

Next year's championship order is set to be reset thanks to the new regulations which come into play in 2026, and Verstappen has not been shy about the fact that the competitiveness of his new Red Bull could determine whether he leaves the team, or even the sport as a whole.

Speaking as recently as this weekend, Verstappen admitted: “My contract runs until 2028 but it will depend on the new rules in 2026, and if they are nice and fun. If they are not fun, than I don’t really see myself hanging around."

So, if Wolff does still want to keep schmoozing Red Bull's star driver with a potential team switch in mind, perhaps a better use of his time would be to focus on making Mercedes' 2026 machinery as competitive as possible.

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