Steiner Names F1 Team Which He Believes Verstappen Could Join

Tuesday, 08 October 2024 at 18:26

Former Haas team principal Guenther Steiner revealed the team he believes Max Verstappen will join if he decides to leave Red Bull.

In the latest update about his future, Max Verstappen suggested that his current goal is to ideally stay with the Red Bull Racing Formula One team.

However, when asked whether he could potentially leave the team from Milton Keynes earlier than 2028 thanks to a rumored special clause in his contract, the triple World Champion didn't deny the possibility.

One factor that might significantly influence Verstappen's decision whether or not to leave Red Bull is the competitiveness of his car.

Red Bull lost its dominance after the start of the 2024 season, and although the team still remains competitive, fighting for podiums, the 27-year-old's goal is to fight for Championships.

So what would happen if the Austrian team couldn't provide a Championship-fighting car for their star driver? Would he leave, and if yes, where? Former F1 team principal Guenther Steiner shared his opinion in an interview with City AM.

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"Yes, I think if he goes, he's going to Mercedes. There seems to be a long love affair there, and Jos [Verstappen's father] gets on very well with Toto [Wolff, Mercedes team principal]."

Verstappen was also being connected to Aston Martin shortly after announcement of Adrian Newey joining the British team as Technical Managing Partner and shareholder.

Lawrence Stroll, the team's owner, has a clear vision and is putting all the important pieces together. The British team has a new factory. From 2025, the team will have a legendary car designer on board along with a new wind tunnel, and in 2026, they will have their own power units built by Honda.

In addition, money seems to be no problem at Aston Martin, so no matter how big of a salary Verstappen would desire, chances are he would get it.

However, Steiner believes Mercedes is the better team at the moment, which is another reason to convince the triple World Champion to join the German team. He added:

"It could be exciting and I think Toto is in a good position. He can pick Max if he is available [likely 2026]. He is running a business and you need to get the best team to win championships."