Christian Horner responds to rampant Max Verstappen noise: 'He gets quite annoyed by it'

Christian Horner has dismissed the persistent speculation surrounding Max Verstappen's F1 future as "a lot of noise."

The Red Bull team principal appears unfazed by the media frenzy surrounding the four-time F1 drivers' champion and rumours linking him to Mercedes, claiming Verstappen finds it "a bit annoying" as well.

The subject has been a major talking point since early last year, but with the topic bubbling away on the back burner for much of the season so far, it has been reinvigorated by George Russell claiming his team is engaged in talks with the Dutchman.

Although one of the stand-out performers in F1 this season, the British driver has yet to be offered a new deal by Toto Wolff and is out of contract with Mercedes at the end of the current campaign.

It leaves him under a cloud of uncertainty. However, he insists he is not worried due to the form he is showing. Wolff, meanwhile, has repeatedly called his current line-up "perfect" over the weekend in Spielberg.

It is widely expected that Kimi Antonelli would be the one to stay if Verstappen could be lured away from Red Bull.

The boss of the Brackley-based squad is known to be a long-term admirer of the 65-time grand prix winner and refused to shut down the speculation at the Austrian Grand Prix, Red Bull's home race.

When Horner was asked about the situation, he batted away any concern, presenting himself as unbothered by the issue.

"It's a lot of noise. I think Max gets quite annoyed by it," the 51-year-old told Sky Sports F1 after qualifying at the Red Bull Ring.

"We're very clear with the contract that we have with Max until 2028, so anything is entirely speculative that is being said. But we tend not to pay too much attention to it."

When it was questioned whether he felt it was underhanded to allow the situation to engulf the F1 paddock at a rival team's home grand prix, Horner took a shot at Mercedes and Russell.

"I can imagine that George is frustrated," the Briton said. "He hasn't been given a contract yet, but that's between him and his team.

"But the situation with Max, we know clearly where we're at, and obviously, as does Max.

"So everything is subject to noise, and obviously, within any contract, it remains confidential between the parties."