Having firmly believed that Max Verstappen was destined for Mercedes come F1 2026, McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown admits that prediction will no longer come to fruition.
In fact, with Verstappen staging a remarkable comeback mission in pursuit of a fifth World Championship, Brown has concluded that this is the best Verstappen we have seen. McLaren therefore knows it has work to do to secure a title double.
Is this Max Verstappen the best version yet?
For much of F1 2025, it appeared that McLaren was cruising towards retaining the Constructors’ Championship, and winning the Drivers’ crown. The first part of that equation was achieved with comfort, but the Drivers’ Championship is no longer a straight fight between McLaren’s Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris, as Verstappen is back on the scene.
Having won three of the last four grands prix, Verstappen has hacked his deficit to Championship leader Piastri down to just 40 points. With five grands prix and two sprints still to go, suddenly, the reigning champion no longer feels like such an outside bet to make it five Drivers’ titles in a row.
How the situation has changed since the summer, when Verstappen was being linked with departing the struggling Red Bull team for Mercedes.
“I said a while ago I wouldn’t be surprised to see Max in a Mercedes,” Brown told Sky Sports News in July.
But, with Verstappen re-affirming his Red Bull commitment at the end of that month, and since returning to immense form, Brown’s prediction has not rung true.
“For a long time, I thought Max would go to Mercedes after this season, but that’s not going to happen,” Brown told De Telegraaf.
“In fact, lately, the future of Verstappen is no longer a topic of discussion.”
Verstappen has reeled off four World Championships in a row, yet Brown made the bold claim that we have never seen a better Max Verstappen than right now.
“That says something about his and Red Bull’s performance and how comfortable he is in his own skin,” Brown continued. “Max seems to be better than ever at the moment.”
Therefore, Brown adds: “So, of course, we take him very seriously in the title race. It would be very foolish not to.”
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At the Mexico City Grand Prix, Verstappen was presented with the theory that this is the best version of himself yet. He was told that he had found another few tenths within himself, as per the claim of Red Bull senior advisor Helmut Marko.
Verstappen replied to Sky Sports: “I disagree, because for me, yes it’s more enjoyable now, of course being able to fight at the front again, but I know every time that I sit in the car, in good or bad days, I will always give it everything I have, and that has never left.
“That’s why I don’t think I suddenly drive faster, I just have a more complete car to be able to fight back up front, and then it’s just more enjoyable. I always try to extract the most out of it.”
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