Max Verstappen will love what Mark Webber just said about Laurent Mekies which could allay his 2026 Red Bull fears

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Max Verstappen appears set to continue his record-breaking spell at Red Bull Racing beyond this season.

Red Bull and Max Verstappen started working together in 2016, and the signs that they were going to be a groundbreaking partnership were immediately apparent when he won on his debut for the team at the Spanish Grand Prix.

Four drivers’ championships later and Verstappen is one of the most successful Formula 1 drivers of all time.

However, a sequence of events has led to Verstappen’s future at Red Bull being fundamentally questioned.

Mercedes chiefs greenlit a move for Verstappen with both of their drivers out of contract for next season.

However, George Russell is close to agreeing a new Mercedes deal, and it’s expected that Andrea Kimi Antonelli will follow suit.

One of the reasons why people believed that Verstappen might seek a move away from Red Bull next year is the question marks over the competitiveness of their 2026 car.

Whispers suggest Mercedes might have the best 2026 power unit, but former Red Bull driver Mark Webber might have just said something about new team principal Laurent Mekies that alleviates some of those fears.

READ MORE: Red Bull driver Max Verstappen’s life outside F1 from net worth to girlfriend

Mark Webber says Laurent Mekies is a ‘very intelligent guy’ when it comes to F1 engines

One worry about next season for Red Bull is their engines, with the team manufacturing their own for the first time alongside Ford.

Christian Horner called Red Bull’s engine project a ‘massive leap’ as they look to take on far more experienced outfits like Mercedes, Ferrari and Honda.

Mekies and Webber were speaking on Channel 4’s coverage of the Belgian Grand Prix, and talking about his first few days with Red Bull, he said: “The team is incredible, there are so many incredible talents in this team, so yes, it does feel like the first day at school.

“But on the other side, it’s such a well-organised winning machine that I think there are more reasons than you can think of for stepping in on the first day.”

Webber replied: “We worked together in 2002. Laurent was on my engine, that’s right.

“So, he knows his engines, too, don’t worry. He’s a very, very intelligent guy on the hardware side, and also operational logistics, etc.

“Mate, you’re not new to this sport, you’ve got a lot of experience, a lot of people at home in the UK might not know your track record, but it’s pretty impressive.

“In terms of the big changes, you’ve just said the harmony in the team in terms of position and experience is not too bad, but clearly there’s been a change to make a change.”

READ MORE: All you need to know about Red Bull team principal and CEO Laurent Mekies

Laurent Mekies pinpoints where he thinks he can help Red Bull after Christian Horner exit

Mekies was asked by Webber what opportunity he might have to improve things at Red Bull and explained: “I think it would be wrong to get there and say, we are going to do A, B and C.

“It’s a team that has smashed all the records with their track record in the past 20 years, and I think the priority is to take the time to meet the people, get to know as many of our people as possible.

‘That’s what we’ve done in the past two weeks, that’s what we’ll do in the next weeks.

“It’s great also to see them operating at the race track, and then little by little, you get an understanding of the strengths, of the weaknesses, of the dynamics.

“More so, on how to support the team, and how to create together the next competitive edge that we will need to reach our targets.”

If Mekies can use his engineering expertise to cast an eye over Red Bull’s 2026 power units, that will give Verstappen far more confidence that they’re going in the right direction.

Nobody will know which team has done the best job until qualifying begins at next season’s Australian Grand Prix.

With Mekies at the helm, there might be a slightly bigger chance that Verstappen is topping that session than before.