Max Verstappen can leave Red Bull as F1 champion insists there's still a seat at Mercedes

Max Verstappen

Max Verstappen can leave Red Bull as F1 champion insists there's still a seat at Mercedes

Max Verstappen could be set to leave Red Bull in the future

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Sunday 12 July 2026 09:52

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Four-time F1 world champion Max Verstappen could yet join Mercedes, according to a fellow champion of the sport.

Verstappen's long-term future at Red Bull has been called into question lately, with his own manager Raymond Vermeulen confirming that there are exit clauses in his Red Bull contract, which is meant to run until the end of 2028.

Red Bull have failed to give Verstappen a car capable of challenging for race victories in 2026, and it's thought that it may take them a while to get back to championship-challenging contention.

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That has only added to the speculation that Verstappen could be off to find pastures new, with the McLaren team rumoured to be his most likely destination.

Toto Wolff's Mercedes outfit have been the team most closely linked with Verstappen's signature over the years, with Wolff publicly pursuing Verstappen in both 2024 and 2025. But Mercedes now have Kimi Antonelli and George Russell as their drivers, two stars who are challenging for the world championship.

Therefore, that has led to the McLaren rumours, with it being reported that Oscar Piastri - who is not in good form - would be heading in the opposite direction.

Part of the reason for McLaren being the most likely destination for Verstappen at this stage is because McLaren have already signed Verstappen's race engineer and long-time close ally Gianpiero Lambiase, who will join the Woking outfit in 2028 at the earliest.

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Is Verstappen to Mercedes still on?

Despite the McLaren rumours swirling around Verstappen, 2009 F1 world champion Jenson Button believes that a move to Wolff's Mercedes team could still be on the cards.

Button was discussing Verstappen's future with his colleagues on the Sky F1 podcast.

Discussing whether contracts are worth the paper they’re written on in F1, Button said: "If his management weren't asking around, they're not doing their job properly.

"So, they should be asking around. I'm sure there are two teams that he'd be interested in. McLaren possibly and obviously the big one at the moment, Mercedes.

"All drivers have contracts, but you know, money talks. So, I mean, there's always a way of moving a driver on to somewhere else.

"I think that Max at Red Bull, I think he sounds really frustrated at the moment."

F1 Max Verstappen Mercedes Jenson Button