Max Verstappen F1: Departed trainer does not rule out that the Dutchman will leave for Mercedes

Max Verstappen and Mercedes have been regularly linked this season and now that there are rumblings again surrounding Adrian Newey, a possible departure is seriously on the table again. Bradley Scanes, Verstappen’s former trainer, can hardly believe that the Dutchman is leaving. Yet he doesn’t rule it out either.

At the beginning of this season, a major riot suddenly broke out within the Red Bull team with the investigation into Horner. The bomb then exploded internally and there even seemed to be a real power struggle within the organization. Prominent figures such as Horner, Helmut Marko, Jos Verstappen and the bigwigs from above seemed to be involved in the internal problems and the question seemed to be how this whole unrest could be resolved. Then the whole thing seemed to have settled into calmer waters and the focus returned to performance on the track.

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Oil on the fire

However, at the end of last week there was commotion again in Milton Keynes, because Adrian Newey seems to be planning to leave the team. Subsequently, Verstappen’s departure for Mercedes train started again and the three-time champion would even hold talks with the Silver Arrows. Jos Verstappen also recently added fuel to the fire by certainly not ruling out a move to Mercedes: “I think everyone really wants Max, but I think Max is just fine at the moment,” he said. RaceXpress. “He has a fast car, but yes, we also have to look further. We are also looking at 2026. We let everything happen a bit and we remain very calm and see what will happen.”

Departure is possible

At an earlier stage, his former trainer gave Scanes in the Sky Sports F1podcast his verdict on Verstappen at another team. The man who knows Verstappen well cannot imagine it, although he does not rule it out: “It would be incredibly strange to see Max in a suit that is not from Red Bull. He grew up within the team, he loves of the team and of the team’s mentality. On the other hand, you can never say never. All he wants is to win Scanes.

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