Verstappen and Wolff's 'holiday date' – will F1 champ move to Mercedes?

Milton Keynes’s young driver guru Helmut Marko was himself then investigated after the leak of Whatsapp messages purported to be related to the investigation, and Verstappen intimated that if the former was removed from the team, then he’d go too.

The driver’s father Jos then weighed in, saying Horner risked tearing Red Bull apart if he stayed – his words were prescient.

The team’s talismanic tech chief Adrian Newey soon left for Aston Martin, before Jonathan Wheatley moved to Sauber. Meanwhile, the car’s performance took a nosedive as McLaren and Ferrari turned up the heat.

Despite the relationship with Horner being strained, Verstappen appealed for calm, and managed to cling on to the drivers’ title, but as early as the first Horner investigation whispers surfaced suggesting Verstappen would be off to Mercedes in 2025.

With Lewis Hamilton already confirmed at Ferrari for the following season, Wolff was open to the Verstappen suggestions.

“I’d love to have him,” said Wolff. “But first we need to sort out our car. I think we owe it to our drivers, George [Russell] and Lewis, to improve the car and give them equipment that is good before dreaming about the future next year.

“Let’s word it like this – I think this is a decision that Max needs to take, and there is no team up and down the grid who wouldn’t do handstands to have him in the car.”

Eventually, as Verstappen claimed the championship and appeared at least a little more settled, Wolff conceded defeat.

“Red Bull was the dominant car at the beginning of the season,” he said. “And that changed a bit. It’s Max Verstappen dominant at the moment.

“And the relationships were dysfunctional. I’m not sure they are back in a great place, but it is what it is. There was a moment, or there was an opportunity, to at least have conversations of what it could be in the future, and this is what we did.”

Verstappen’s potential Mercedes F1 switch – the rumours return in 2025

However, with a difficult start to the 2025 season for Red Bull, the Max to Mercedes chat came back again.

What added further intrigue is that current Merc driver George Russell appears to be in the form of his life, winning in Canada and blowing away his young rookie team-mate Kimi Antonelli – and yet the Brit hasn’t been signed up, his contract set to run out at the end of this season.

Prior to the 2025 Austrian GP, he revealed the hold-up.

“It’s only normal that conversations with the likes of Verstappen are ongoing,” Russell said. “Toto has made it clear to me that how I’m performing is as good as anybody.

“There is only one driver that you can debate in terms of performance. These are his words and not my words, and that is why I have no concern about my future.
“But there are two seats to every team and I guess he needs to think who are those two drivers.”

Wolff was cagier on the subject, but implied that Russell was correct.

“George has always performed to the expectations we set. We haven’t given him a car to win the world championship in the last three years and that’s on us.

“The times the car is good, he has been winning races. You know he is going to extract what’s in the car.

“You are going into territory I don’t want to discuss out there. People discuss and explore, and in our organisation people are transparent. But it doesn’t change a millimetre of my opinion of George.”

However, all parties have suggested it’s more likely that Russell stays at Mercedes rather than not.

“I don’t think we need to talk about that,” was Verstappen’s terse offering on the subject.

“It’s not really on my mind. Just driving well, trying to push the performance, and then we focus on next year.”

Horner was then removed from Red Bull following the British GP. Is the company trying to appease the Verstappen camp in a bid to keep him on?

Verstappen’s potential Mercedes F1 switch – where are we now?

For now, Verstappen is contracted to Red Bull for the next year.

Some of the less sensational opinions suggest it would be wise for him to keep his powder dry and stay at Milton Keynes for one more season and see how the new 2026 regulations affect the pecking order.

It’s thought that Mercedes is in the pound seats in the development of complicated new engine formula, while Red Bull’s Ford-branded effort is struggling – intensifying the rumours.

That all being said, there’s simply no certainty until the 2026 cars hit the track. Or, for that matter, which car Verstappen will be in.