Ted Kravitz thinks Max Verstappen is asking one ‘crucial question’ whilst deciding between Red Bull or Mercedes

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The 2026 F1 season brings with it a new set of regulations which will see the updated 11-team grid engage in a development battle to reinvent their cars in hopes of setting the fastest example.

The regulations have already affected McLaren, effectively closing a loophole which would aid tyre management, which is what McLaren are currently reaping the benefits from this season.

There are also worries from one of McLaren’s main rivals on whether or not Red Bull’s engine will be competitive enough to challenge for a championship in the regulations’ inaugural season.

With rumours of Max Verstappen jumping ship to Mercedes, Ted Kravitz has identified the performance of what Red Bull Powertrains will produce as being a “crucial question” that the Dutchman will be asking before he makes his decision.

Ted Kravitz highlights that Max Verstappen has to ask one ‘crucial question’ of Red Bull

Speaking on The F1 Show, Kravitz discussed with Simon Lazenby the benefits of George Russell and Verstappen staying put before looking into other options after a year of the new regulations in the books.

“George is going to get another year’s deal, and then Max is going to see how it works,” he started. “The crucial question is, ‘What will the Red Bull Powertrains engine be like next year?’

“Will it be good enough for Max to think, ‘I can live with this, with three times the amount of hybrid recovery and power.'”

With the help of F1-genius designer Adrian Newey, Red Bull dominated the 2022 regulations, which saw a complete overhaul of the chassis and introduced ground-effect aerodynamics to the cars.

However, since the 66-year-old left the Milton Keynes-based team in the middle of 2024, it has opened the door for the rest of the grid, namely McLaren, to catch up.

Mercedes has ‘always been good’ at developing a strong power unit in F1

Another team who are no stranger to acing new regulations is Mercedes, who started a dynasty at the beginning of the turbo-hybrid era in 2014, resulting in eight constructors’ championships on the trot.

Their success was largely down to the development of a power unit that the rest of the grid simply could not compete with.

The German team have been on the back foot in the development race since 2022, but the results of McLaren, who are a customer of Mercedes’ power units, have proved that they are still capable of building a strong engine.

Kravitz echoed these sentiments, stating that “Mercedes has always been very good on the power unit side,” adding, “Red Bull technologies and their powertrains will have to be absolutely tiptop,” if they hold hopes of retaining Verstappen until 2028.