The future of Max Verstappen remains a hot topic in F1 these days, and while he may still be undecided on whether to stay or leave the sport entirely, he has been linked to a potential move to McLaren.

This rumour that began ahead of the Austrian GP has now got some credibility to back it. Sky Sports presenter Craig Slater confirmed that a meeting between Verstappen and the McLaren Racing team ‘indeed’ took place.

According to Slater, Verstappen’s personal team was the one that reached out first, based on a short clip posted by Sky on X.

“The interesting thing we learned ahead of the Austrian race was that there had been a meeting with his management and McLaren management," said Slater. "Now, I learned that this was, that it did indeed happen. It was instigated by Max's people."

Slater then gave a short analysis of why Verstappen would consider McLaren a better option over today's Red Bull, adding:

"And well, the first question I suppose you'd ask is, why would Max want to go to McLaren? They're not doing that well this year, but Max knows they are capable of building a winning car.”

While Mercedes and Ferrari are at the top of the table in this season so far, McLaren sits just above Red Bull in the third spot. On one hand, McLaren are the defending champions, while on the other, the 2026 season has not started well for Red Bull.

Plus, disappointment over the power unit regulations made Verstappen threaten to leave F1 entirely on multiple occasions, even though his Red Bull contract is valid until 2028. However, with F1 moving to a 60:40 power split in a phased manner, that threat seems to have died down.

That said, many senior figures from Red Bull have left or are expected to leave soon. Gianpiero Lambiase is confirmed to join McLaren in 2028, while Paul Monaghan is reportedly leaving for Cadillac. 

Interestingly, Mercedes Team Principal, Toto Wolff, has been very public about wanting to rope in Verstappen in the past. However, his recent comments state he is keen on sticking with his current driver pairing. 

As for McLaren itself, Zak Brown appears to have responded to the rumours.

Zak Brown 'flattered' by Max Verstappen's interest in McLaren

McLaren Racing CEO has pushed back against speculation of roping in Max Verstappen. He feels there is no reason to do so, given they have a well-settled driver lineup with Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri.

However, he also felt it was flattering that a four-time World Champion was considering them. Appearing on "Heart" radio, Brown said:

“We’re a hot team. It’s a great place to be. We’ve got two awesome drivers in Lando and Oscar, so no intention of seeing a different line-up. But you know, flattering and the phone rings often, and he’s a massive talent, so we’ll see what the future holds, what he ends up doing. But I know what our plan is – it’s to keep going with what we’ve got."

Brown further emphasized that McLaren is "not in the market" for a driver change.

However, if things between Verstappen and McLaren end up materializing, some reports suggest we could see Oscar Piastri going to Red Bull: a team he could have been in many years ago when he was still plying his trade in junior levels.

Read more at Motor Culture! 

Written by

Aaradhya Singh

Edited by

Yash Kotak