McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown believes Max Verstappen is most likely to join Mercedes amid speculation that the four-time Drivers' World Champion is gearing up to leave Red Bull.
This comes as theories swirl that the Dutchman might reunite with his longtime race engineer, Gianpiero Lambiase, who we recently learned is joining McLaren in 2028 as chief racing officer.
While Brown has admitted to keeping an eye on Verstappen's contract situation in the past, he remained resolute that McLaren is sticking with its current driver lineup, Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri.
"From McLaren's point of view, I couldn't be happier with Lando [Norris] and Oscar [Piastri]," the 54-year-old told Sky Sports F1. "We have long-term agreements with them, and I think it's the greatest driver pairing on and off the track. So we have no intention of replacing any of our two superstars."
"You know, obviously, if one were to go away, then yeah, Max is a huge talent, but I'm not anticipating that," Brown continued. "Where might he go? If I had to bet, I'd say to Mercedes."
Current Drivers' Champion Lando Norris also shared his thoughts on Lambiase's McLaren move:
"We've already got an incredibly strong team. In some ways, you think about what other space you want to fill, but we want the best of the best in every area. As a team, we believe there's an area that he can cover and a responsibility that he can improve within our team. But it's all about working together well, and we believe he's a good team player and someone who can just help us elevate in another area, and we want to be the best in every single area possible."
"So it's still something that's a long way away, you know, it's a few years down the line, but he's obviously a great guy, he's someone who's achieved an incredible amount with Max. You know, everyone knows of him, and everyone hears him on the radio every now and then, so he's a cool addition, and I think it's a great opportunity for us to learn from someone new, but it's also something good to have another guy join the team and someone who wants to join McLaren as well. That makes it even better."
We're only a few races into the 2026 Formula 1 season, and there have already been some unexpected twists and turns. We're sure more are coming, and what the future holds in store for Verstappen is TBD.
You can hear more from Brown in the player below.