F1 Today | Brown: Verstappen to 'leave' Red Bull, will Honda depart F1?

The second Grand Prix weekend of the 2025 season is drawing ever closer. Media day for the Chinese Grand Prix kicks off early on Thursday morning for those in Europe, but for now, GPblog can bring you the latest news from the F1 paddock. Zak Brown believes that Max Verstappen will be driving for a different team in 2026, teams suffer from freight issues at the Shanghai International Circuit, and will Honda be prompted to leave Formula 1? Find out now!

Max Verstappen is completing his final season at Red Bull Racing, McLaren CEO Zak Brown believes. According to the American, the Dutchman will join Mercedes when the new set of regulations begins in 2026. Brown sees that there would be room for Mercedes to potentially sign the four-time world champion. Both George Russell and Andrea Kimi Antonelli's contracts only last until the end of the current season.

He explained to The Telegraph. "Oh I think he’ll leave at the end of this year. Most likely to Merc [Mercedes]. There’s been talk of Aston Martin, too, with Adrian Newey joining. But as great as Adrian is – and he’s the greatest ever – you need a whole team around you."

McLaren recently announced that Oscar Piastri is signing a long-term deal after Lando Norris was previously tied down. Therefore, McLaren has their seats filled, but that does not mean Verstappen will not make a switch. Read the full article here.

Soon, there will be new engine rules in Formula 1 as the new technical regulations kick in next year. Given its complexity, many fear one manufacturer will end up dominating the competition, and additionally, given their cost, it remains to be seen whether each will be able to build a competitive one at all.

The reintroduction of the V10 engines seemed like another empty promise by FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem. However, the German newspaper Auto, Motor und Sport believes that the federation is indeed looking into whether it would be possible to make that happen. According to Auto, Motor und Sport, a group has been formed to assess the possibilities of the switch. It is also reported that half of the teams would support this idea.

On the other hand, Audi and Honda would not see such change taking place. To begin with, the Germans would have never entered the competition if hybrid engines were not used. Honda also decided to remain because of the electrical components. If that would disappear, the Japanese brand's exit cannot be ruled out either. See the full article here!

F1 photographer Kym Illman earlier reported that multiple teams were affected by a freight delay on their way to Shanghai. The list included Red Bull Racing, McLaren, Mercedes and Aston Martin. After GPblog reached out to several teams, they confirmed that their belongings arrived in the Chinese city by Wednesday afternoon local time.

With a Sprint scheduled, it could make any delay inconvenient. Should teams still need to rely on additional time to carry out their work, the FIA have already permitted an extra 90 minutes of time before the mandatory curfew.