What Max Verstappen staying means for Mercedes F1 drivers

With Max Verstappen’s Red Bull Racing release clause now unable to be triggered, we discuss the implications on the driver market in the latest edition of The Race F1 Podcast. Scott Mitchell-Malm and Josh Suttill join Edd Straw to ask if this means the Verstappen to Mercedes talk can be put to bed for now, or if the focus now shifts to 2027. We also discuss the impact on Mercedes, with George Russell’s continued stay at the team now seemingly assured and Kimi Antonelli having a difficult time in recent races. The Hungarian Grand Prix is also previewed before we tackle listener questions on topics ranging from Liam Lawson and Franco Colapinto to Lewis Hamilton and Pirelli tyres. 00:00 Intro 02:19 Verstappen (almost certainly) stays 07:28 What Russell deserves 12:30 Antonelli's crisis of confidence 17:19 Hungarian GP expectations 24:55 Why is Colapinto keeping his seat? 28:59 How big is the Lindblad threat to Lawson? 33:05 Is Leclerc getting the credit he deserves? 36:20 How has McLaren pulled away since TD? 39:39 Hamilton's document-sending 46:00 Pirelli's tyre step experiment 48:12 Special preview: Hill docuseries review Published: 2025-07-30
Chanel: THE RACE