Max Verstappen is one of Formula One’s biggest stars and his name has been synonymous with the Red Bull brand ever since his debut into the sport. He’s been with the team for nearly a decade and won four consecutive Driver’s Championships with them over the course of his career. Verstappen currently holds one of the longest driver contracts, having a deal until the end of the 2028 season. However, there was a brief moment this past summer where rumors of his departure from his beloved team were circulating the F1 paddock.
It all started when Mercedes driver, George Russell, was asked about his contract negotiations with the team. “The four-time World Champion has been linked with a move to the Silver Arrows after George Russell said in Austria that Mercedes were ‘having conversations’ with the Dutchman amid his own contract discussions — the Briton’s current deal expires at the end of this season,” F1 media reported. However, when this news came out, many people dismissed it as just another rumor without any credibility to it. One of those people was Red Bull’s team boss at the time, Christian Horner. Horner talked to Sky Sports F1, calling the whole thing “a lot of noise” and re-stating: “We are very clear with the contract we have with Max until 2028. Anything is entirely speculative that has been said. We tend to not pay too much attention to it.”
Horner wasn’t wrong about what he said. Verstappen is arguably one of the most talented drivers on the current F1 grid and he’s involved in rumors about switching teams every season. With Verstappen’s skill level, any team would love to be the one to tempt him away from his current contract. However, it turns out that these rumors were different because on July 9th, 2025, the news of Christian Horner’s departure from Red Bull was announced.
Red Bull has been struggling all season, falling behind in both the Constructor’s and Driver’s Championships, something that has been completely uncommon the last couple of years. Previously, Red Bull had comfortably led both championships in 2022 and 2023, with Verstappen holding the most wins out of all the drivers. This season, Verstappen himself only won a handful of races, a big switch up from his long winning streaks of the past. The team’s slow decline was the reason for Horner’s replacement, but that just added more fuel to the rumors that things weren’t looking too bright for the team’s future, and so Verstappen might be looking to jump ship. It didn’t help that he responded to these rumors with vague comments and elusive answers. The rumors came to a blazing fire when Verstappen was allegedly spotted with Mercedes’ team principal, Toto Wolff, after news of Horner’s departure hit the public.
For weeks, I was glued to my phone, waiting to see if a deal would be finalized. Verstappen has never raced outside of a Red Bull car for the entirety of his F1 career, so seeing a switch up to Mercedes would be the biggest news since Lewis Hamilton left the Silver Arrows for Ferrari. During that time, the rumors just kept circling, each report sounding more definitive than the last, that the move was all but a done deal. All the while Verstappen and Wolff remained quiet and cryptic about what the truth actually was.
The rumors finally came to a screeching halt after the summer break, when Verstappen broke his silence and flat out denied them. “Ahead of this weekend’s race in Budapest and a three-week summer break, Verstappen was asked whether his and Wolff’s yachts would be spending time together, hinting at ongoing negotiations between the pair. But the 27-year-old dismissed the suggestions and confirmed he would be staying put with the Milton Keynes-based outfit for next season,” F1 media confirmed. The summer of Max Verstappen’s potential move to Mercedes was finally over and everyone who was hoping to see him in a different uniform, come next season, was swiftly disappointed.
Even though it was proven to be just rumors, some fans haven’t given up hope. The world of Formula One still remains completely unpredictable and with the new regulations being implemented next year, who knows what could happen? Maybe Verstappen will surprise us all one day — most likely when we least expect it.