Handshake Deal: Verstappen Eyed by Rivals for 2026

Verstappen might switch teams in 2026, stirring up the F1 scene as insiders hint at a potential transfer.

Red Bull has good reason to worry about keeping Max Verstappen on its team after the 2025 season.

The three-time world champion is contracted until 2028, but the agreement is littered with performance and exit clauses that likely offer him an opportunity to leave at the end of 2025.

Verstappen’s management, led by his father Jos and Raymond Vermeulen, has openly flirted with Mercedes F1’s Toto Wolff in recent months.

F1-insider now reports that a “deal sealed with a handshake” has even been struck between Jos Verstappen and Wolff, concerning a potential transfer of the 26-year-old driver for 2026. In a word: the door is closed for 2025 but remains open thereafter should the need arise.

However, another potential option for Verstappen has emerged as Red Bull loses its technical “genius” Adrian Newey to Aston Martin F1 for 2025 and beyond.

The Silverstone squad could also be highly attractive to Verstappen, who secured his three titles with Red Bull and the Japanese manufacturer.

Asked about the potential new link between Verstappen and Aston Martin F1, Red Bull advisor Dr. Helmut Marko said, “I have no idea where that comes from.”

It has even been suggested that Verstappen might try to bring his mentor Marko with him.

“I must admit the Aston Martin was a fun company car,” Marko smiled, referring to the period when Aston Martin sponsored Red Bull, “but that’s not the deciding factor for me.”

“Any sensible team head must be interested in Max. And he always wants to sit in the car in which he can become world champion.”

Marko admits Newey will likely find new success in green.

“Even when he joined us, Newey had the expertise to become a world champion. He started with very specific demands and ideas. Today, it requires a much larger team, but he will probably get it.”

Mike Krack, the head of Aston Martin F1, notes that he already has two drivers under contract, including Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll. Parting with one of them to accommodate Max Verstappen would be complex. Alonso has worked to build the team, Stroll is the boss’s son.

“When you’ve completed a puzzle, to add another piece, you have to remove one!” Krack admits.

However, Red Bull team boss Christian Horner insists that Verstappen is still fully committed to the Austrian team.

“He’s working with the engineers and clearly identifies where the car’s issues are. He spends a lot of time and effort on this process and has been involved in numerous Zoom calls and the simulator over the last two weeks.”

“Everything else is just unfounded speculation. One day he’s heading to Mercedes F1, another to Aston Martin. But the certainty, the contract, the intention, that’s Red Bull Racing.”