Max Verstappen to Mercedes? Helmut Marko Has His Final Say

Max Verstappen to Mercedes? Helmut Marko Has His Final Say

With Adrian Newey no longer a part of Red Bull’s F1 operations, rumors pointing to Max Verstappen’s future away from the team are getting stronger. He has been heavily linked to Mercedes, where Toto Wolff is looking for a Lewis Hamilton replacement. Marko, however, asserts that the three-time World Champion will continue to be a Red Bull driver.

During a conversation with oe24, Marko gave a rather open-ended answer regarding Verstappen’s future. The Dutchman’s F1 ambitions have a lot to do with his choice of ride.

“Max [Verstappen] wants to drive where he has the best chances of winning, and that is currently Red Bull.” 

Wolff and Red Bull’s Managing Director Oliver Mintzlaff meanwhile, continue fighting over the former’s pursuit of Verstappen. The Mercedes boss keeps hinting at wanting to lure him away, but Mintzlaff rubbished any possibility of the same happening.

Like Marko, Mintzlaff asserts that Verstappen wants the fastest car and that Red Bull has it.

Before the Miami GP, there were reports of Verstappen’s camp meeting the Mercedes heads. However, nothing transpired and Wolff too, admitted that nothing was planned.

Still, Red Bull is showing signs of weakness for the first time in three years, and if this persists, Verstappen could look to move away to a more stable team.

Max Verstappen could be on his way out of Red Bull

Verstappen doesn’t want to stay in F1 for as long as Lewis Hamilton or Fernando Alonso. As such, being on the most dominant team makes perfect sense for him, as he looks to win as much as possible before calling it quits.

Mercedes isn’t the fastest team on the grid, and doesn’t seem to be making a lot of progress either. Having last won a race in 2022, it seems unlikely that Verstappen will switch to Brackley.

Former F1 mechanic turned motivational speaker Marc Priestley, however, believes that with the 2026 regulation changes on the horizon, Mercedes could replicate their success ahead of the onset of the turbo-hybrid era (2014).

Verstappen, hence, could risk a Hamilton-esque move and make the leap. But, Priestley’s feeling is that Verstappen will stay at Red Bull in 2025, at least.

Post Edited By: Somin Bhattacharjee
Max Verstappen Mercedes Red Bull

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Naman Gopal Srivastava

Naman is an F1 writer at The SportsRush. Initially a football fanatic who worships Puyol and Leo Messi, Naman soon fell in love with the world of F1 upon reading about Jim Clarke. While the current era drivers do fascinate him, Naman still chooses to idolize Clarke and Ayrton Senna. When he is not busy watching the highlights of some of the greatest races of his idols, Naman can be found scribbling little snippets in his diary of poems or out in the town, exploring new places to eat.

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