Lando Norris
McLaren
Mercedes
Red Bull
Ferrari
Williams
Racing Bulls
Aston Martin
Haas
Alpine
During the height of Red Bull’s turmoil in 2025, it looked like Max Verstappen would potentially leave Milton Keynes for greener pastures at the Austrian constructor’s fierce rivals, Mercedes.
Christian Horner had just been given his marching orders from Red Bull, and the McLaren duo of Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris were increasing their advantage on the rest of the field at the top of the F1 standings with every passing race weekend.
Rumours of Max Verstappen holidaying in the vicinity of Mercedes boss Toto Wolff sent the links into overdrive, which was later debunked by Red Bull sources.
However, speculation of a potential partnership between the two parties is ever-present, but former F1 driver Juan Pablo Montoya believes the Austrian executive may start to lose interest in a move in the coming months.
- READ MORE: Guenther Steiner predicts Max Verstappen’s F1 future with fascinating ‘make it happen’ claim
Niki Lauda knew talent when he saw it. Did Mercedes make a mistake not signing Max Verstappen?
Juan Pablo Montoya thinks Kimi Antonelli could complicate Mercedes’ future plans for Max Verstappen
Wolff is a keen admirer of the Dutchman’s talents and has been trying to secure his signature since before he even made his debut in Formula 1 back in 2015.
The most recent rumours that linked Verstappen’s move to Mercedes also coincided with Kimi Antonelli’s most difficult period during his rookie F1 season.
After securing a maiden podium in Montreal, results became hard to come by for the young Italian. The European leg of the season was borderline disastrous for him at the German constructor, and the rumours began to swirl.
However, Montoya believes that Antonelli’s return to form in the latter stages of the recently concluded season will harm Verstappen’s chances of becoming a Silver Arrow if it continues into the 2026 term.
On a recent episode of the MontoyAS podcast, he said, “I think so, but the complicated thing is that George and Antonelli are both starting to do a very good job. If they both do a good job, they won’t need Max.”
Now, it does beg the question of whether Verstappen’s talents deserve more than what an in-form driver can offer.
On the other hand, Antonelli is still only 19 years old, and it is all still possible for his talents to potentially usurp those of Verstappen in future years, albeit being very unlikely.
- READ MORE: George Russell tells Mercedes ‘a confrontation is inevitable’ if they sign Max Verstappen
Kimi Antonelli and Max Verstappen will be Mercedes teammates during their F1 career – change my mind
Comment below!
Aston Martin is also a potential option for Max Verstappen if he opts to depart Red Bull
Given the highly successful partnership that the 28-year-old had with Adrian Newey during his tenure at Red Bull, a move to Aston Martin has also been on the cards for Verstappen.
The rumours regarding a potential switch to Silverstone have only been compounded by his Red Bull race engineer’s talks with Aston Martin.
Gianpiero Lambiase, who has been Verstappen’s right-hand man since his debut with the Austrian constructor in 2016, is reportedly interested in the project that Lawrence Stroll is currently building.
With how formidable the Verstappen/Lambiase partnership has been, it would be a natural move for the four-time world champion to follow his closest ally to another team if the move does indeed come to fruition.
Receive exclusive F1 news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
