The 27-year-old Briton is out of contract with Mercedes next year, and his remarks bring back to the surface a narrative that always threatened to dominate this summer in Formula 1. World champion Verstappen is under contract to Red Bull until the end of 2028, but the deal is said to have break clauses that the Dutchman could use to exit.

Toto Wolff says any Mercedes interest in Max Verstappen has no impact on talks with George Russell over his 2026 seat.