Helmut Marko turns the screw on Mercedes as Russell contract lingers: “They’re not waiting for Max”
Helmut Marko never misses a chance to stir the pot, and with George Russell’s Mercedes renewal still not signed, the Red Bull advisor has offered his diagnosis: it’s money, leverage… and maybe a touch of payback.
Russell, Mercedes’ de facto team leader in 2025 alongside rookie Andrea Kimi Antonelli, has yet to ink terms beyond this season. That’s dragged on long enough for Marko to raise an eyebrow — and deliver a jab. “They’re certainly not waiting for Max,” he told German media, a knowing nod to the long-dead rumour that Verstappen could wind up in silver. With Verstappen publicly set on staying at Red Bull for 2026, Marko added he can’t see “anyone else suitable” to lead Mercedes. Translation: there’s no obvious alternative — which makes Russell’s holdout all the more interesting.
A few months ago, Russell himself reignited the Verstappen-to-Mercedes chatter by admitting those conversations were influencing his own talks. That balloon’s been popped. Verstappen has shut the door on 2026, and yet Russell’s new deal still hasn’t landed. Marko’s conclusion? This is down to salary and terms, with a little history baked in. “After Russell was kept waiting for so long,” he suggested, “perhaps this hesitation is his revenge.”
There’s a kernel of truth in that. Russell’s path to becoming Mercedes’ leader wasn’t straight. He bided his time as a junior, did the hard yards at Williams, then arrived at Brackley to find a seven-time world champion across the garage. He’s now the senior man, a race winner with a clean reputation and a strong qualifying record — and the one tasked with steering Mercedes through the giant 2026 regulation reset. In a driver market where top-tier alternatives are thin, his leverage is obvious.
Toto Wolff, for his part, insists the delay isn’t about doubt but detail. The Mercedes boss recently signalled the intent to continue with both Russell and Antonelli, while hinting the fine print is where the work is. “With George, there are a few things we want to optimise — the travelling and the marketing days, how many hours we’re putting in,” Wolff told reporters. “He’s an experienced driver, and we want the best performance. We’ve given both of them quite a strain with marketing and media activities, and this is how we recalibrate.”
That reads like a modern contract in 2025: not just base salary and term, but the wear-and-tear of a global calendar, the sponsor days, the appearances and the never-ending content machine. Top drivers now negotiate everything from simulator loads to social obligations, and with 2026’s lighter cars and new power units coming, the sporting side is about to change dramatically too. No surprise if Russell’s camp wants the structure — and compensation — to reflect that.
Marko’s cheeky “revenge” line is classic Helmut, but he’s not wrong that Mercedes can’t bluff here. If Verstappen is off the table, and if the post-2026 market doesn’t offer an obvious leader, Russell’s value only rises. Antonelli is a massive talent, but he’s still new. Mercedes will want continuity, a benchmark, and someone who knows how to carry a team through a rules reset. Right now, that’s Russell.
It’s also worth noting the human angle in Wolff’s comments. Teams have stretched drivers to breaking point in recent seasons. If Mercedes are genuinely rebalancing obligations to protect performance, that’s both smart and overdue — and it aligns neatly with what a top driver would push for in a renewal. The optics of “salary holdup” make for easy headlines; the reality is usually a stack of clauses and calendars.
So where does it land? The smart money says Mercedes and Russell get it done. The team gets its leader tied down, Antonelli gets a steady hand beside him, and Marko gets to claim he called the bluff when the news drops. Maybe he even did. But if this has been a little bit of “revenge,” it’s also just good negotiation from a driver who’s earned it.
In the meantime, expect more nudges from Milton Keynes. Marko knows the value of narrative pressure, especially when the other side is trying to project calm. And Mercedes? They’ll point to the long game: lock the line-up, trim the noise, and throw everything at 2026.
The clock’s ticking, even if nobody wants to admit it.
