What Max Verstappen ‘would not have’ at Mercedes amid ‘boring’ rumours

The rumours of a potential Red Bull exit for Max Verstappen are becoming tedious for Helmut Marko.

Plus, if Verstappen did go to Mercedes as the rumour mill is suggesting, Marko – Red Bull’s senior advisor – stressed that Verstappen would not enjoy the amount of “freedom” with Mercedes which he is afforded by Red Bull.

Max Verstappen to Mercedes: Would ‘freedom’ be an issue?

Speculation that Verstappen could look to leave Red Bull has bubbled away over the last year with his and Red Bull’s dominant ways having faded.

Verstappen is under contract until the end of 2028, but a performance-related exit clause within those terms drives the rumours, with it believed that Verstappen could trigger it if he was outside the top four in the Drivers’ Championship after the Hungarian Grand Prix, two rounds from now.

The Verstappen to Mercedes noise has grown louder recently thanks to George Russell, who claimed that “ongoing” talks between Verstappen and Mercedes were influencing his path to a new contract. Mercedes are yet to announce a contracted driver for F1 2026, with neither Verstappen or team boss Toto Wolff denying that discussions have taken place.

The chatter was boosted further when jet and yacht trackers potentially found that Verstappen and Wolff had met up in Sardinia.

Marko though has had enough of the talk.

“This story that everyone wants Max is becoming boring,” he declared to Sky Italia.

“He has a contract with us until 2028, and as long as we give him a competitive car, there is no reason why he should leave.”

Marko also believes that joining Mercedes would come at the cost of “freedom” for Verstappen.

Alongside his Formula 1 activities, Verstappen has recently conducted several GT3 tests, and in 2025 expanded his own racing team with an entrance into the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup, combining with Aston Martin machinery.

Verstappen is also highly active on the virtual racing scene outside of his F1 endeavours.

“With us, he has a lot of freedom, which he would not have with Mercedes,” Marko warned.

How F1 2026 is shaping up as new era looms

? F1 2026 driver line-up: Who is already confirmed for the 2026 grid?

? F1 2026: Confirmed teams and power unit suppliers for F1’s huge regulation changes

Taking into account the believed requirements of Verstappen’s exit clause, the British Grand Prix brought with it a major step towards making that a non-factor.

While it was a challenging race weekend for Red Bull – Verstappen recovering to P5 after a spin and Yuki Tsunoda failing to score for the fifth race in a row – Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, who currently sits P5 in the Drivers’ standings, had a nightmare race and crossed the line P14.

It means the gap between Verstappen and Leclerc is 46 points with a maximum of 58 up for grabs before that window to activate the clause.

Read next: New Yuki Tsunoda update as Red Bull hold ‘intensive discussions’