How Max Verstappen deals with all the Mercedes and 2026 questions – and what it means

At the Austrian Grand Prix, off-track conversations in the paddock focus on two key topics: ongoing concerns about the 2026 Formula 1 regulations, as voiced by Charles Leclerc, and Max Verstappen’s future.

The latter has been closely tied to recent comments from George Russell. The Brit mentioned in Montreal that Verstappen was “on the radar” at Mercedes and referred to “talks” while speaking to the media in Spielberg. In both cases, he added that this was entirely logical as any team should be considering drivers of Verstappen’s calibre.

Unsurprisingly, this has sparked plenty of questions for the main figures involved, including Toto Wolff during the team principals’ press conference and Verstappen himself.

Interestingly, it was exactly a year ago at the same venue that Verstappen was asked whether he would be driving for Red Bull the following year. At the time, he answered with a clear “yes,” but during this year’s media day, his response was more calculated.

“I’ve had that question before in my life. I don’t think we need to talk about that,” the world champion said during the press conference. “I don’t know, do you want me to repeat what I said last year? I don’t know. I don’t even remember what I said last year. But again, it’s not really on my mind. Just driving well, trying to push the performance, and then we focus on next year.”

Does this season influence Verstappen’s decision?

The topic came up again during the more informal Dutch media session in the Red Bull hospitality. Verstappen repeated that his focus is on the current season but added some thought-provoking comments. “I just want to concentrate first on the steps we can still take now. Next year is always a question mark, and this season doesn’t really influence that. We’ll see.”

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, George Russell, Mercedes, Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes

Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images via Getty Images

The idea that this season doesn’t directly impact next year is interesting. On one hand, it makes sense given that the 2026 regulations will bring a complete overhaul in F1 both in terms of power units and chassis. On the other hand, one could argue that Red Bull still has something to prove to Verstappen, specifically whether it can turn around the current situation – a performance deficit – without Adrian Newey as part of their technical team.

When Motorsport.com put that point to Verstappen, the Dutchman responded: “Yes, but if you look at the previous set of regulations, Mercedes was extremely strong, and it was very hard for us to turn that around. In the final year [2021], we finally got close to them. Then with the new regulations, a different team – Red Bull – started off very strong. Eventually, McLaren raised the bar even further, but Mercedes never really did. Sure, a few races, but never long-term as the outright fastest team. Next year could is another unknown. Just because a team is doing well now doesn’t mean that the same team will be doing well next year.”

Will 2026 be decided by the new engines?

That uncertainty makes any decision for 2026 a gamble to some extent. A major factor in that equation is the engine. Positive whispers about the Mercedes power unit have been circulating in the paddock for some time, but does Verstappen also expect that next season will be defined largely by engine performance? “I think in terms of pure engine power it’s not that bad and it will be quite close. It’s just the battery, and yeah, no one knows about that. I think everyone is trying to get the most out of it, but we’ll have to wait and see in that regard.”

That unknown makes playing the waiting game a sensible strategy for now. Verstappen has an internal picture of what Red Bull Powertrains Ford is working on, while Toto Wolff will also have some things to say about the new Mercedes engine in the behind-the-scenes talks – which Wolff himself referred to on Friday.

At this stage, keeping all options open seems the smartest move – and that’s exactly what all parties involved are doing: Wolff did it extremely well during the press conference in Spielberg, and the same can be said about Verstappen.

Photos from Austrian GP – Practice