Max Verstappen’s Father Jos Fuels Mercedes Rumors With Cryptic Message Over Red Bull Situation

The cogs on the F1 driver market wheel are spinning. After Adrian Newey’s Red Bull exit reports, Max Verstappen‘s future with the Milton Keynes outfit is under question. Moreover, Mercedes is reportedly exploiting this situation by offering the 2-time champion a whopping $160 Million a year contract to join them. At this junction, his father, Jos Verstappen’s ambiguous declaration, has added to the drama.

Ever since the Christian Horner case went public, Jos Verstappen has been vocally critical of the Red Bull Boss. He even claimed that Horner had put Red Bull in a position of being “torn apart”. Shortly after, Jos even confirmed the ‘power struggle’ within the team. With this in the background, and Adrian Newey’s shock exit, Mercedes TP Toto Wolff has doubled down in his pursuit of signing Max Verstappen.

At the Miami GP, the 2 parties will reportedly convene to discuss the multi-million dollar move for Verstappen to replace Lewis Hamilton. Now, even Jos Verstappen has opened up on this much-discussed topic. “I think everyone really wants Max,” Jos said, as quoted by Express. “I think Max is in a good place at the moment. He has a fast car, but we also have to look further. We are also looking at 2026, so we are letting everything happen to us. We will remain very calm and see what will happen.”

The 52-year-old’s cryptic comments don’t give us an idea of how concrete the Mercedes speculations are. But what we can infer is that Verstappen staying with Red Bull isn’t a given and there is uncertainty. RB Team Advisor Helmut Marko, however, believes that the reigning champion will not exit the team.

Helmut Marko bluntly shuts Max Verstappen to Mercedes rumors

Adrian Newey’s exit indicates that the tension within Red Bull is high. Max Verstappen, who vowed to stay at Red Bull if the “peace” remains, faces a conundrum. Should he continue with RB because they have consistent performance, or jump ship to Mercedes, which seems like a more peaceful destination? Helmut Marko believes that his star driver will chose the former.

“He always wants to be in the fastest car,” Marko told Oe24. “And Max in the Red Bull? That’s an unbeatable combination. But if you put the Max in a Ferrari, things would look different. The 20 seconds that he is ahead of Checo [Perez] corresponds to his driving superiority. Max will drive where he has the best car, and he has that at Red Bull. Nothing else is on the horizon.”

Red Bull has had the best-performing car for the last 3 years and that will most probably continue into 2025 as well. But the regulations reset in 2026 could lend the upper hand to Mercedes. For Verstappen, changing teams would come down to the timing of the move. Will he get it spot on, to continue his dominance?