Max Verstappen signs for McLaren and four other F1 silly season moves

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F1 2027

Max Verstappen signs for McLaren and four other F1 silly season moves

Max Verstappen's long-term future at Red Bull is up for debate

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Thursday 9 July 2026 12:27 Updated: 12:33

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F1 silly season 2026 is now in full swing, with the biggest storyline of all concerning the very best driver on the grid.

The future of four-time world champion Max Verstappen is hanging in the balance, with his current team Red Bull not giving him a car capable of challenging for race wins or championships this year.

At the British Grand Prix, frustration got the better of the Dutchman, launching an X-rated rant on team radio about his RB22 after crashing out of the main race.

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Strictly speaking, Verstappen is contracted at Red Bull until the end of the 2028 season, but his manager Raymond Vermeulen recently revealed there are exit clauses in that deal.

While Mercedes have been the team most closely linked with acquiring Verstappen's signature in recent years, it appears as though McLaren are now the favourites to land the Dutchman. A move for Verstappen would set off a massive domino effect on the rest of the grid.

The term 'silly season' has been used in recent years to describe this period of the championship where rumours of driver transfers are swirling non-stop, with many of the official announcements from the teams about their 2027 lineups yet to arrive.

Time to delve into some of the biggest deals which could happen in the next few weeks.

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Max Verstappen to McLaren

Verstappen to McLaren makes total sense. From 2028, the Dutchman's long-time race engineer and close ally Gianpiero Lambiase will be joining the Woking-based outfit.

Max is facing the biggest decision of his career to date with his contract exit clause due to trigger at the summer break later this month. He is outside the top two in the championship standings, which means he can test the open market if he wants to.

Verstappen would come up against 2025 world champion Lando Norris at McLaren, which would be a blockbuster partnership, and one which would ensure McLaren are certainly maximising the performance of their car. It would also be a match made in commercial heaven from a sponsorship and merchandising perspective.

For what it's worth, this is what McLaren CEO Zak Brown said about the idea of Verstappen joining: "I'd be very surprised if Lando or Oscar went elsewhere. They're very happy, we've contracts but even contracts aside, we’re very happy with them.

"If for some strange reason someone slipped on a banana peel getting out of the tub, then yeah of course, Max is a four-time world champion."

Of course, and that's the deal here. McLaren as it stands have no interest in changing their driver lineup. But if a generational talent and multiple world champion hits the open market then absolutely everything changes. Watch this space.

Verstappen is strongly linked with Zak Brown's McLaren.

Oscar Piastri to Red Bull

Piastri to Red Bull is the first domino to be knocked over by Verstappen moving to McLaren. The seat as number one in Milton Keynes opens up, and effectively swapping Max for Oscar is the play.

The Australian driver won seven grands prix in 2025, and led the drivers' championship between April and October last year. Then it all went wrong.

Piastri suffered a huge slump in the second half of 2025 and ended up finishing third in the drivers' championship, behind team-mate Norris and Verstappen.

It would be easy to suggest that it is this slip that has impacted his 2026 form, but Piastri has not even been competitive against his team-mate in the early stages of 2026.

He has regularly been outqualified by Norris and currently sits 15 points behind the Brit in the drivers' championship.

A fresh start at Red Bull would do Piastri the world of good, and he and Isack Hadjar could mould the team to their needs as the outfit looks to rebuild.

Red Bull are unlikely to be championship challengers in the next couple of years, and so the pressure would cool off for Piastri, allowing him to rebuild his confidence before launching a title tilt.

Fernando Alonso to Alpine

The 44-year-old Fernando Alonso has had a dismal season so far. The two-time world champion has scored just one world championship point as his Aston Martin team struggle with performance and reliability issues.

Reports in Italy have suggested Alpine are lining up a move for Alonso for 2027, with Flavio Briatore keen to be the Spaniard's boss once more for what may be his final season in the sport.

Alonso has driven for the Enstone-based outfit on three separate occasions, between 2003-2006, 2008-2009 and most recently, from 2021-2022.

Alonso won two world championships with the team in 2005 and 2006 when they were known as Renault, and Briatore was team principal at the time.

He is now executive advisor, and still shares a good relationship with Alonso. He has, however, suggested he is also happy with his current driver lineup of Pierre Gasly and Franco Colapinto.

If Alonso wants to escape his current Aston Martin nightmare and compete with a team who are running higher up the grid for what might be his final season in the sport, then Alpine could be the call.

Again, right now Alpine appear reasonably comfortable with Gasly and Colapinto, but if a two-time world champion becomes available, then everything changes. A recurring silly season theme in 2026.

Fernando Alonso has a major decision to make.

Pierre Gasly to Aston Martin

If Alonso moves to Alpine then the spot as number one at Aston Martin opens up, and Gasly would be an intriguing option.

The Frenchman thrived in that role at AlphaTauri for many years, and then joined Alpine in a similar role after Alonso had originally departed the team.

While Alpine have certainly improved in 2026, there's not much hope of a future championship battle for Gasly to get involved in.

The Frenchman is 30 years of age now, and he might feel like one more career move while he's still in his prime, particularly to a team who have such lofty ambitions like Aston Martin.

While 2026 has been miserable so far at Aston Martin, 2027 could be a whole lot different as Adrian Newey starts to really impact the performance of the car.

Yuki Tsunoda to Haas

Esteban Ocon was axed by Alpine for poor performance before the 2024 season had even concluded and he has struggled at Haas as well.

The Frenchman finished behind team-mate Ollie Bearman in the drivers' championship last year, despite the young Brit being in his rookie season, and he is once again behind his team-mate in 2026.

Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu said 'nobody was satisfied' with Ocon's performance in 2025, and it seems likely they will look elsewhere for 2027.

Step forward Yuki Tsunoda. Dropped by Red Bull at the end of 2025, Tsunoda had forged a name for himself in the sport at 'junior team' Racing Bulls, and could do so again with Haas, proving to be a solid and experienced number two to Bearman.

Haas' new partnership with Japanese car manufacturer Toyota has led to reports of Haas making a move for Tsunoda, with there reportedly being a desire to get the Japanese racer back onto the grid.

It makes racing sense, it makes commercial sense. A move that is likely to happen.

Alonso returning to the grid with Haas looks very possible.

READ MORE: McLaren star reveals F1 exit

Written by

Sam Cook - Digital Journalist

Sam Cook is a talented young sports journalist and social media professional who now specialises in Formula 1, having previously worked as a football journalist and a local news reporter for a variety of different brands.

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F1 Red Bull Max Verstappen McLaren Oscar Piastri