Mercedes dealt significant Verstappen blow

Max Verstappen has dealt Mercedes a huge blow in their attempts to sign the Dutchman for 2025.

Unrest in camp

After over two years of domination in Formula 1, the past few months have posed some challenges to Red Bull. After news of allegations against CEO and Team Principal broke to the media, there has been a certain amount of unrest in the camp.

Chief Technology Officer Adrian Newey is confirmed to be leaving the team in 2025, as rumours of Verstappen possibly also leaving the Austrian team persist.

This uncertainty has attracted Mercedes who have reportedly made a substantial offer to Verstappen to lure him to the Brackley based team. The 26-year-old has been touted as a possible candidate for the seat left vacant by Lewis Hamilton.

However, PlanetF1 has reported that Verstappen is happy at Red Bull Racing. The three-time world champion has made it clear that he would not switch teams purely for financial reasons.

However, talking to PlanetF1 Verstappen voiced his content with Red Bull and explains he does not see why he should change teams: “Well, at the end of the day, these kinds of decisions are not made very easily and I’m very happy with where I am. I don’t necessarily have the desire to suddenly build up something new or whatever.”

Verstappen gave an honest assessment of his desire to stay with Red Bull, stating the potential longevity of his and the team’s dominance:

“Because why would you want to leave when you are already in the best position and you think you can continue that for a long time?”.

Verstappen has over three years left on his Red Bull contract which runs until 2028.

Aiming for a hat-trick of #ImolaGP wins ??#F1 || @Max33Verstappen ? pic.twitter.com/H6BrhffTtl

— Oracle Red Bull Racing (@redbullracing) May 13, 2024

Alternative candidates

With Verstappen an unlikely option and Alexander Albon also ruled out following his Williams contract extension, the number of candidates for Mercedes’ second seat has shrunk over the past few weeks. The German team have only changed drivers once in the past seven years but now face perhaps their biggest ever challenge, replacing Hamilton.

One name that has emerged above the rest for the seat is 17-year-old Andrea Kimi Antonelli. After only three months of racing in Formula 2, the Italian driver has been touted as a possible successor to Hamilton. Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff looking to avoid missing out on an upcoming superstar.

However, when speaking on SkyF1 former Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg said he believes Wolff’s best option is to wait before deciding on a solution:

“Antonelli is definitely a superstar of the future but unfortunately timing-wise it’s really too early for him, and especially too early for Toto to be able to make a decision on Antonelli”, said Rosberg following the Miami Grand Prix.

“He needs to wait until somewhat later in the year as we see how Antonelli does in F2 also, because he does need a really strong season in F2 to make it a possibility for him to go straight to Mercedes.”

First @F1 test for Kimi Antonelli ✅? pic.twitter.com/n5vjx5QIBJ

— Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team (@MercedesAMGF1) April 17, 2024

Antonelli currently sits ninth in the F2 World Drivers Championship Standings after three race weekends. Outgoing Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz and retired German driver Sebastian Vettel are also rumoured as possible options for the seat.

Feature Image Credit: @F1Mood on X