Nelson Piquet Jr, the brother in law of Max Verstappen, has seemingly backtracked on his claim that the Red Bull driver will be with Mercedes for the F1 2026 season.<\/p>\n
And he has raised the theory that Red Bull sacked team principal Christian Horner in a bid to convince the reigning four-time World Champion to stay for next season.<\/p>\n
Max Verstappen to Mercedes? Nelson Piquet Jr provides latest update<\/p>\n
Despite being officially under contract with Red Bull until the end of the F1 2028 campaign, Verstappen has been heavily linked with a move away from the team at the end of this year.<\/p>\n
Horner, the recently departed Red Bull team boss, confirmed to media including PlanetF1.com<\/a> last year that Verstappen\u2019s deal contains a \u201cperformance element\u201d that could allow him to leave before 2028.<\/p>\n It is believed that Verstappen will be able to activate an exit clause if he is lower than fourth in the Drivers\u2019 standings following next weekend\u2019s Hungarian Grand Prix, the final race before F1\u2019s summer break.<\/p>\n Analysis: Max Verstappen to leave Red Bull for Mercedes?<\/p>\n \ud83d\udc49 Max Verstappen or George Russell? The choice for Mercedes is simple<\/a><\/p>\n \ud83d\udc49 How Max Verstappen to Mercedes could shake up F1 2026 driver market<\/a><\/p>\n Verstappen currently holds third in the championship with an 18-point advantage over George Russell, the driver he would most likely replace at Mercedes.<\/p>\n Charles Leclerc, the Ferrari driver, sits a further 28 points back in fifth place.<\/p>\n It was claimed last week that Ola Kallenius, the Mercedes chief executive, has approved Verstappen\u2019s proposed move to Mercedes<\/a> for F1 2026.<\/p>\n Piquet Jr, the former Renault F1 driver and brother of Verstappen\u2019s partner Kelly Piquet, recently let slip that Verstappen is highly likely to start next season as a Mercedes driver<\/a>.<\/p>\n The Brazilian claimed that Verstappen was \u201cjust missing final contract details\u201d on a deal to replace Russell, with a final decision expected to be made next month.<\/p>\n In a fresh update, Piquet Jr appeared less convinced that Verstappen is Mercedes bound for next season, even raising the possibility that the 27-year-old has \u201calready said no\u201d to Toto Wolff.<\/p>\n Appearing on the Pelas Pistas podcast, he said: \u201cMax just wants to be where he thinks he can win.<\/p>\n \u201cDoes money play a role? Of course, but the most important factor is that he wants to be in a good car.<\/p>\n \u201cThe only two choices he has are Red Bull and Mercedes.<\/p>\n \u201cMaybe they sent Horner away to get him [Max] to stay? I don\u2019t know.<\/p>\n \u201cMaybe he\u2019s already signed [for Mercedes], but maybe he\u2019s also already said no.\u201d<\/p>\n Rumours online in the aftermath of the recent British Grand Prix claimed that Verstappen and Wolff met in Sardinia<\/a> in an apparent attempt to seal a deal for F1 2026.<\/p>\n However, it is unclear if a meeting between the pair actually took place.<\/p>\n Piquet Jr went on to play down the significance of the pair being in Sardinia at the same time, adding: \u201cThat\u2019s just a place where people go on holiday.\u201d<\/p>\n Mercedes\u2019 preparations for the new F1 2026 rules \u2013 which will see the sport embrace 50 per cent electrification, fully sustainable fuels and active aerodynamics \u2013 are widely believed to be advanced.<\/p>\n The Silver Arrows previously emerged as F1\u2019s dominant force following the introduction of the V6-hybrid engine rules in 2014, winning a record eight consecutive Constructors\u2019 championships and seven Drivers\u2019 titles split between Lewis Hamilton (2014-15 and 2017-20) and Nico Rosberg (2016).<\/p>\n Next season will see Red Bull produce its own engines for the first time via its newly established Powertrains division, working in collaboration with Ford as current supplier Honda switches to Aston Martin.<\/p>\n A report in April claimed that only one manufacturer<\/a> \u2013 strongly believed to be Mercedes \u2013 is in \u2018good shape\u2019 for F1 2026 with every other manufacturer struggling with the development of their new power units to some degree.<\/p>\n Two manufacturers are thought to be \u2018a long way behind\u2019 the clear pacesetters, with another struggling with an uncompetitive engine having elected for a different form of biofuel compared to its rivals, which have all opted for synthetic fuel.<\/p>\n Little is known about the progress of the final unnamed manufacturer.<\/p>\n More on Max Verstappen and Red Bull Racing from PlanetF1.com<\/p>\n \ud83d\udc49 Max Verstappen news<\/a><\/p>\n \ud83d\udc49 Red Bull news<\/a><\/p>\n