Max Verstappen’s former performance coach, Bradley Scanes, believes that the four-time Formula 1 champion will always be linked to the fastest team on the grid, but reiterated that he is “loyal as hell”.
The Dutchman had been connected to Mercedes earlier in the year amid Red Bull’s performance struggles. While Mercedes chief Toto Wolff confirmed that he had been engaging in talks with Verstappen, he admitted that the likelihood of him joining the team for 2026 was low. Verstappen has subsequently confirmed his commitment to Red Bull for next year.
“I think the fastest team and Max will always be linked, and no one’s going to know what happens in 2026,” Scanes explained on the High Performance podcast.
“You know, we’ve just seen that there’s going to be three tests. So, nine days of testing, which I think they’ve had since like 2016, 2015, something like that. So no one knows who’s going to be the fastest.
“There’s engine changes, there’s oil changes, there’s differences in batteries. All this stuff is way outside my scope, but you can see that there could potentially be a shake-up. He’ll have the choice of wherever he wants to go.”
He added: “Max is loyal as hell. He will stay loyal, but only to a point. So, I don’t know. I think he’ll give Red Bull a chance. But if they don’t deliver within that year, then all cards are on the table.”
Scanes touched on the potential off-track distractions, such as media interest and commitments, key personnel leaving Red Bull, and the investigation into former team principal Christian Horner.
Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing
Photo by: Sam Bloxham / LAT Images via Getty Images
“I think he’s very good at shutting it out, and he’s loyal. He’s loyal to the people of Red Bull. He also likes Red Bull as a company. They were the big disruptors, the fun kind of company too, but also they took the chance on Max Verstappen. They did give him the Toro Rosso [seat], they gave him the path to Formula 1 100% which is why that loyalty will be there.
“This is just my personal opinion. I don’t think he’ll jump, but he won’t give them long because he’s still a winner and he still wants to win. He’s not going to sit around for however long he signs for, and it probably won’t be that long because he’s got other interests that he wants to get involved in. However long he signs for, he’s only going to want to win.”
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