F1 News
Verstappen gets advice: 'Should seriously consider Mercedes in 2025'
- Ludo van Denderen
Mercedes managed two wins in a row. The first in Austria came about somewhat fortuitously (after the clash between Norris and Verstappen), the second in Britain was raked in purely on speed by Lewis Hamilton. In any case, the wins are signs that Mercedes is on the way back to the top. Robert Doornbos suspects Max Verstappen has seen that too.
While Mercedes is on an upward trajectory, Verstappen's Red Bull Racing is struggling more and more. Doornbos, himself once racing for Red Bull, previously expected Verstappen to race for the Austrian squad again in '25, given the previous balance of power. In 2026 - according to Doornbos at the time - Verstappen would then switch to Mercedes.
are Mercedes better option than Red Bull?
With Mercedes getting stronger and Red Bull at least breathing down his neck, Doornbos believes his compatriot should consider whether Mercedes is not already a better option in '25. "In principle, Max still has a contract, but in my view Max should start thinking seriously whether he should not get in with Mercedes before 2025," Doornbos told Motorsport.com. "If the Mercedes really turns out to be that good, he could have a wonderful gap year at Mercedes next year and then dominate again from 2026."
Christian Horner, Red Bull's team boss, assumes Verstappen will stay with his racing stable. Indeed, he has already let slip that he believes Lewis Hamilton is leaving Mercedes for a reason. Indeed, according to Horner, Hamilton would have seen that Mercedes' power unit for '26 is not strong. Nonsense, Doornbos thinks. "I think Lewis is just ready for a new environment. And the chance to go to Ferrari only comes along once in a lifetime, if at all."