Max Verstappen to Mercedes rumours reignite with ‘handshake agreement’ claim – report

Max Verstappen’s father has a “handshake agreement” in put with Toto Wolff for the Red Bull driver to connect Mercedes for the F1 2026 season, it has been claimed.

Mercedes as of late finished their driver lineup for another season, affirming that young sensation Andrea Kimi Antonelli will supplant seven-time World Winner Lewis Hamilton as George Russell’s team-mate for F1 2025.

Max Verstappen to Mercedes gossipy tidbits reemerge with ‘gentleman’s agreement’ claim
The choice to advance Antonelli came after diligent joins of a move for Verstappen, with Mercedes boss Toto Wolff making no mystery of his crave to sign the ruling three-time World Winner as Ferrari-bound Hamilton’s successor.

In spite of holding a contract until the conclusion of the F1 2028 season, Verstappen’s future has come beneath investigation this year in light of the increased pressures between his father Jos and Ruddy Bull group foremost Christian Horner, as well as the declining execution of the RB20 car as F1 2024 has progressed.

Having begun the season with four wins from the primary five races, Verstappen remains without a triumph since the Spanish Amazing Prix seven races ago – his longest triumph dry spell since the 2020 season.

That destitute run has seen Verstappen’s lead over McLaren driver Lando Norris diminished to 59 focuses ahead of this weekend’s Singapore Terrific Prix, a race the Dutchman has never won.
In the interim, Red Bull misplaced the lead of the Constructors’ Championship for the primary time since May 2022 in Baku final end of the week, with McLaren ahead by 20 focuses with seven races remaining.

Red Bull have seen a number of senior figures leave over the course of F1 2024, with plan master Adrian Newey heading to Aston Martin and donning chief Jonathan Wheatley set to gotten to be Audi F1 group foremost following year.

On Wednesday, Red Bull reported a staff rebuild in arrangement for Wheatley’s exit, with Verstappen’s long-serving race build Gianpiero Lambiase advanced to head of hustling among a few other inner advancements.

Lambiase will proceed to serve as Verstappen’s race build nearby his modern part, which he will commence at the begin of another year.

A report by German distribution F1 Insider has claimed that Newey’s exit has been a ‘particular’ blow to Verstappen, leaving a ‘huge gap’ within the group.

It is said that Newey ‘is courting Verstappen’ to persuade the 26-year-old to follow him to Silverstone, with Verstappen telling reporters in Azerbaijan last weekend that a move to Aston Martin ‘is something maybe for the future that I think about, but not now.’

However, it is claimed that Verstappen has already been lined up for a move to Mercedes for F1 2026, with rumours indicating that his father has struck a gentleman’s agreement with Wolff to make the move to Brackley.

The report claims that Verstappen Sr and the Red Bull star’s manager Raymond Vermeulen are banking on Mercedes being the ones to ace F1’s major technical regulation changes in 2026, when new engine and chassis rules – including a switch to 50 per cent electrification and fully sustainable fuel – will come into effect.

Having emerged as F1’s dominant force under the last major engine changes in 2014, after which the team won a record eight consecutive Constructors’ titles and seven straight Drivers’ Championships split between Hamilton (six) and Nico Rosberg (one), Mercedes’ preparations for the 2026 rules are widely thought to be advanced.

The 2026 season will see Red Bull fueled by their claim in-house Powertrains division, whereas current providers Honda will rejoin with Newey at Aston Martin.

In spite of Honda’s victory with Red Bull over later a long time, it is claimed that there are fears over whether Honda ‘will be able to keep up from the outset’ with their competitors, having initially pulled back from F1 at the conclusion of Verstappen’s lady title-winning season in 2021.

In spite of the fact that Verstappen is formally contracted to Ruddy Bull for the following four seasons, it is said that his bargain would demonstrate no impediment to a move to Mercedes due to the nearness of exit clauses, which the World Winner can ‘use for 2026 beneath certain conditions.’

Talking to media counting PlanetF1.com at final month’s Dutch Amazing Prix, Horner was unyielding that Verstappen will stay with Red Bull for as long as the group can give him with a competitive car.

However he conceded that execution clauses seem avoid Verstappen from seeing out the aggregate of his Red Bull bargain.

Horner said:
“I discover it astounding how much discourse within the open media there’s almost this subject.

“The circumstance was continuously clear between ourselves and Max and I think that others can conversation, but we’re comfortable with where we’re at.

“It’s down to us to provide. We have an assention until 2028, so it’s down to us to provide.

“I didn’t see Toto’s car performing that well [at Zandvoort]. 2028 could be a long way away. It’s down to us to supply a race-winning car.

“Every contract features a execution [clause] component in it. We’re not planning to conversation almost what those components are, but as long as we offer a competitive car we know what the circumstance is.”

Mercedes picked against indicating the precise length of Antonelli’s contract when reporting the 18-year-old’s advancement, whereas the two-year expansion marked by unused team-mate George Russell final summer is set to run out at the conclusion of following season.

Showing up on Sky F1 at the later Italian Amazing Prix, Rosberg claimed that Russell “is not secure at all” at Mercedes and portrayed the 2025 season as a shootout between the British driver and Antonelli to gotten to be Verstappen’s 2026 team-mate.

 He said: “George Russell is not safe at all because Toto still wants Max and he will try again for 2026 because ‘give up’ does not appear in Toto’s vocabulary.

“If Max does become available – and I do think it’s a possibility – then it is a shootout between George and Kimi next year.
And it’s a lot of pressure on George because he has everything to lose, really, next year.

“He should be the one ahead internally, because Kimi is 18 and he’s completely new and in a full-pressure situation.

“It’s not an easy situation there for George.”