Max Verstappen warned over losing key Red Bull advantage in Mercedes switch

Max Verstappen would not have a choice of who his partner at Mercedes should be if he were to sign for the Brackley-based squad, according to former F1 driver Karun Chandhok. Verstappen has been linked with a switch to Mercedes for the 2026 F1 season amid Red Bull's dip in form and rumblings over how the grid could shape up under new technical regulations next year. Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff signalled earlier this season that he was no longer attempting to sign Verstappen following his public pursuit in 2024. But recent reports of Russell nearing a contract extension have been disputed, at a time when Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko has confirmed Verstappen has a performance clause in his contract. Verstappen has easily dominated his Red Bull team-mates across the last six years and has established himself as the clear leader in the squad with a run of four consecutive title-winning campaigns. Chandhok has suggested Verstappen has had input into who drives alongside him at the team - a liberty he would lose should he depart for Mercedes. “I think Red Bull has created a situation, perhaps, where Max has got a say on who is in the other car,” Chandhok told Sky F1 . “Whereas at Mercedes, he may not have a say. “If you were Toto, and you had the option of George and Max, that's an unbelievably strong line-up.  “Those are two drivers who have been consistently performing at the highest level for six months.”

Max Verstappen facing 'difficult call' over F1 future

F1's technical regulations will undergo a major change next year, with the chassis and power units being built under new rules. Recent reports have suggested the Mercedes power unit, which will power its works team as well as McLaren, Alpine and Williams, is the strongest of the bunch. Red Bull is constructing its own power unit for the first time in its history and has entered a partnership with Ford to do so. With so much uncertainty over the huge F1 rule change, former F1 strategy engineer Bernie Colins sees a difficult choice ahead for Verstappen. “He's not happy unless he's winning races,” she said on the latest Sky F1 podcast. “Despite all of the water under the bridge or history [against Mercedes], I have the impression he will just go where he thinks is the best chance of winning, whichever team on paper he thinks is the best chance of winning, I imagine, will be his preference. “He'd be fit to put all that other stuff potentially out of the way. “We don't have all the information about which engine is going to be best, which chassis is going to be best. It's going to be a very, very difficult call.”