Mercedes<\/a> were keen to sign the Dutchman as a youngster, but missed out as Verstappen\u2019s camp believed that Red Bull offered him a far smoother passage to Formula 1<\/a>.<\/p>\n That came true in 2015 when Verstappen made his debut alongside Carlos Sainz<\/a> at Toro Rosso, and just over a year later, he was a Grand Prix winner with the senior team.<\/p>\n Position Drivers’ Championship PointsPts 1 234 2 226 3 165 4 147 5 119 6 103 7 63 8 46 9 37 10 23 <\/p>\n Verstappen has gone on to win four drivers\u2019 championships<\/a>, but that period of domination is now coming to an end.<\/p>\n Christian Horner lost his job at Red Bull<\/a> as a result, and the instability has created fresh doubts about the 27-year-old\u2019s future.<\/p>\n Mercedes are very keen to sign Verstappen<\/a>, but Ralf Schumacher<\/a> thinks something has changed within the team since Horner\u2019s exit that will offer their fans hope that he might not move to the Silver Arrows this winter.<\/p>\n READ MORE: Red Bull driver Max Verstappen\u2019s life outside F1 from net worth to girlfriend<\/a><\/p>\n Schumacher was speaking about Verstappen\u2019s future on the Backstage Boxengasse Podcast<\/a> and explained: \u201cI think Red Bull made an extremely good move.<\/p>\n \u201cIn this case, Oliver Mintzlaff and [Mark] Mateschitz by now putting Mekies in this position.<\/p>\n \u201cThat did something for the team. Within a short period of time, one hears that the mood is completely different, the approach is different, and one must not forget that Max Verstappen has never been in a different team in his career.<\/p>\n \u201cHe has everything to thank Red Bull for. So, he\u2019s not making it easy for himself, and maybe he doesn\u2019t even really want to leave.<\/p>\n \u201cI can imagine, if everything is fine here, why should he leave? I don\u2019t think that\u2019s quite what he wanted.<\/p>\n \u201cIt just led to the car not working as well as it should. There were internal problems with politics, and suddenly the mood wasn\u2019t so good.<\/p>\n \u201cSo, from that point of view, I think it\u2019s actually very, very open again. Such a development can happen quickly, and this feel-good factor for a driver is important. And this team is completely behind him.\u201d<\/p>\n READ MORE: All you need to know about Red Bull Racing from engine to Ford links<\/a><\/p>\n Ralf Schumacher thinks Mercedes engine could be pivotal to Max Verstappen\u2019s future<\/p>\n![\"Red](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/GettyImages-2215474721-1024x683.jpg\")
Photo by Jure Makovec\/SOPA Images\/LightRocket via Getty ImagesRed Bull make \u2018extremely good move\u2019 that leaves Max Verstappen \u2018very open\u2019 to staying in 2026<\/p>\n