Verstappen on Mercedes chatter: “Waffling around made no sense”
Max Verstappen had every chance to swat away the Mercedes noise. He chose silence instead — and, in his view, that was the point.
The four-time World Champion finally batted down the feverish link to Mercedes ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix, stating he’ll remain a Red Bull driver for 2026. It followed a curious week in which he was photographed holidaying in Sardinia with Toto Wolff, sending the rumour mill into overdrive. Verstappen’s response? Say nothing, keep working.
“There’s always other people speaking a lot, while I’m not really talking,” he told F1’s official site. “I don’t need to say anything. It makes no sense anyway, it’s a bit of a waste of time.”
The backdrop to this saga wasn’t light on intrigue. George Russell, whose current deal runs to the end of this season, hinted at the Austrian Grand Prix that talks to lure Verstappen to Brackley were “ongoing.” A day before Verstappen’s on-record commitment, reports emerged that Russell is closing on a new multi-year extension with Mercedes. The Dutchman, contracted at Red Bull through 2028, ultimately let the paddock chatter burn itself out before putting a lid on it.
In-season, Verstappen’s focus is pointed further down the road. With a hefty regulation reset in 2026 and Red Bull plotting life with its own Powertrains division in partnership with Ford, the team’s long game is obvious — and so is Verstappen’s.
“I’m very focused on ’26 with the team, to make sure we nail the regulations and are competitive from the start,” he said.
That future-facing stance pairs with a frank read on the present. Verstappen has just two wins in 2025 — Japan and Emilia Romagna — as McLaren’s duo of Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris have defined the title picture. He describes Red Bull as in a “slight rebuilding” phase after its dominant run, noting the need for a subtle restructure to climb back to the sharp end.
“ We’re still a very strong team,” he added. “To make another step up, there’s slight rebuilding or restructuring maybe… that takes a little bit of time — but hopefully not too much.”
The engine story sits beneath it all. From 2026, Red Bull-Ford will mark the team’s first in-house power unit era as Honda shifts to Aston Martin and Audi joins the grid. Even Christian Horner — the recently departed Red Bull team principal — dampened expectations at Silverstone, quipping that it would be “embarrassing” for rivals if Red Bull-Ford nailed it at the first attempt.
For now, Verstappen’s happy to let others do the talking. The next statement he’s interested in is the one the RB on track makes.
