Verstappen camp wants future decision ’soon’

Fresh uncertainty over Max Verstappen’s future is continuing to swirl as Red Bull battles both on-track struggles and growing questions about life after Dr Helmut Marko.

The latest twist came after Ralf Schumacher claimed Mercedes had made Verstappen an offer, albeit one so financially unattractive that it was "completely out of the question".

That prompted an immediate response from the Verstappen camp.

"Ralf, again you bring wrong information," Jos Verstappen wrote on Instagram beneath the Sky Deutschland post featuring the comments.

The exchange comes amid ongoing speculation following Verstappen’s recent Salzburg meeting with Red Bull’s top leadership. According to De Telegraaf journalist Erik van Haren, Verstappen declined to commit his future to Red Bull during those discussions despite the looming activation window for his performance-related exit clauses.

Now, Verstappen’s manager Raymond Vermeulen has indicated the uncertainty may not last much longer.

"We want the decision made soon so everyone knows where they stand," he told Sport Bild.

"It could be made before the summer break."

Vermeulen insisted Verstappen remains open to spending the rest of his career at Red Bull. "We have a contract until 2028," he noted.

"Of course, there are release clauses, there always have been. But we’ve never exercised one. We’ve always been loyal and we will remain so."

However, he also made clear that competitiveness remains the key condition.

"We want to continue down the path with Red Bull and see Max finish his career here - but of course with the possibility of winning."

Speculation about Verstappen’s future has intensified as Red Bull struggles to match Mercedes and Ferrari in 2026.

Reports are even linking McLaren’s Oscar Piastri with a potential vacancy should Verstappen eventually depart.

Schumacher believes some of Red Bull’s current difficulties can be traced to the departure of long-time advisor Dr Helmut Marko at the end of last season.

"It’s pretty messed up behind the scenes," said the German.

"I’ve heard that a lot of people only now realise how much work Helmut Marko actually did."

According to Schumacher, Marko’s influence extended far beyond driver development.

"He was the one who brought all kinds of different parts of the organisation together - the Austrian side of the company, the team in England and everything in between. Behind the scenes, much more happened thanks to him than many people thought."

Meanwhile, Mercedes boss Toto Wolff’s comments after Barcelona have continued to fuel discussion about the team’s future driver plans.

Wolff openly admitted he regretted allowing George Russell and Kimi Antonelli race each other while Lewis Hamilton raced to victory.

"When you have a real opponent like Ferrari in the championship, then you sometimes have to let the faster driver go," he said.

"I do believe Kimi could have won."

Instead, Mercedes allowed both drivers to race freely. "We let them drive," Wolff explained.

The consequence, he estimates, was a loss of "probably five or six seconds".