Verstappen wants to stay at Red Bull, says Mekies amid McLaren chatter

SPIELBERG: Max Verstappen wants to stay at Red Bull but needs a fast car, team boss Laurent Mekies said on Friday amid fresh speculation about possible McLaren interest.

At the start of the season the talk was all about whether the four-times world champion would remain in the sport, so unhappy was he sounding about the regulations in Formula One’s new engine era.

Once-dominant Red Bull are fourth in the standings, triggering speculation that Verstappen could be looking to make a move elsewhere. Champions McLaren are third.

Mercedes are the form team but may not have an opening, with 19-year-old Kimi Antonelli a superstar after five wins in the first six races while teammate George Russell is adamant his seat is also secure for 2027.

The paddock chatter has turned to McLaren, who already have an agreement with the Dutchman’s race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase, with the Daily Mail reporting ‘secret’ preliminary talks for Verstappen to trade places with Australian Oscar Piastri.

McLaren have said publicly they are happy with both Piastri and world champion Lando Norris.

Speaking after first practice for this weekend’s Austrian Grand Prix, Red Bull’s home race, Mekies made clear he expected Verstappen – who has had only one podium finish in seven rounds this season – to stay.

“Max has made clear to us that he wants to continue with the team. It’s equally clear that he needs a fast car for him to be happy with the team,” he said.

“We are not asking Max every week. He’s there. He’s pushing with us. He’s helping us to find the right development space for the car… so it’s not the topic for us. The topic for us is get the car back to where we want it to be,” he added.

Mekies would not be drawn on other reports that chief engineer Paul Monaghan was set to leave the team.

“I don’t think it would be right for me to comment on every single rumour that comes out,” he said.

“If I look at the names that have been circulating in the last few months, most of them are still in the garage.

“Some had never wanted to leave, some have changed their mind, some are staying with us… Paul is actually here today. He has been working very hard to get our cars out this morning,” he added.