Pole sitter Max Verstappen (NLD) Red Bull Racing in qualifying parc ferme. 03.06.2023. Formula 1 World Championship, Rd 8, Spanish Grand Prix, Barcelona, Spain, Qualifying Day.
Max Verstappen has not ruled out the possibility of driving for Mercedes in Formula 1 down the line, citing his willingness to “slightly adjust certain things.”
The Dutchman’s indisputable talent prior to his arrival in F1 witnessed both Mercedes and Red Bull clamour for his services, with the Verstappen camp eventually opting to sign with the latter based on the promise of a seat arriving in the top tier come 2015.
Having won on his debut for the senior Red Bull side during his second season, Verstappen has gone on to record 45 career F1 wins and secured two Drivers’ titles.
Despite admitting he has previously harboured thoughts over departing Red Bull, the reigning World Champion penned a long-term extension with the Austrian outfit until the end of 2028 early last year.
But when asked if he could imagine working within a more “corporate environment” at Mercedes, Verstappen didn’t dismiss a future switch to the German marque.
“It is indeed a very different environment [at Mercedes],” he acknowledged to De Telegraaf.
“It’s always important to be yourself and keep telling it like it is. Then it doesn’t matter to me where that is.
“If a team really wants me in such a situation, they will also go for you and I think you can also slightly adjust certain things. Then you come together, so to speak.
“At the moment, of course, this is not the case at all.”
After comfortably retaining his title last year, Verstappen has stormed to victory in 10 of the opening 12 races before the summer break in the all-conquering Red Bull RB19.
With team-mate Sergio Perez triumphing in the other two rounds, Red Bull has won every single race in 2023, setting a new all-time F1 record for the most consecutive victories.
Verstappen, though, insists he doesn’t find the team’s current success “boring”.
“In the past, I could never have imagined that I would achieve this success,” he added. I dreamed of reaching Formula 1 and maybe one day driving for a top team.
“This is what I’ve always worked for. If people now start shouting that it’s boring, so be it. I also know the other side of the coin. I don’t think it’s boring at all.”
Race winner Max Verstappen (NLD) Red Bull Racing celebrates with Christian Horner (GBR) Red Bull Racing Team Principal in parc ferme. 30.07.2023. Formula 1 World Championship, Rd 13, Belgian Grand Prix, Spa Francorchamps, Belgium, Race Day.
While the 25-year-old is set to wrap up a third successive championship in the coming months, Verstappen has repeatedly highlighted that he could elect to walk away from F1 at the end of his current deal.
The bulk of his complaints have centred on the growing calendar and unhappiness at the way the 2026 regulations are shaping up.
Pressed on his criticism of F1’s direction, Verstappen explained: “Yes, because I am concerned about the sport that I have always loved. And still like it, but to a certain extent.
“It’s not that I’m completely against change, as is sometimes said. But they must be adjustments that benefit Formula 1.
“Why do you have to change certain things when things are going well?
“I think a traditional qualifying session is well set up in that form. It shouldn’t just be about money.”
Verstappen concedes that the unrelenting nature of his racing schedule has occasionally left him pondering whether remaining in F1 is “worth it”.
He added: “People may think: he earns a lot of money, what is that guy complaining about? But it’s about well-being, how you experience things and not how much you earn.
“Sometimes I think I have to do too many things, and not do them. Then I sometimes think: is this still worth it?”
Keyword: Verstappen fails to rule out future Mercedes F1 switch