McLaren boss Zak Brown 'uncomfortable' after Max Verstappen rumours

Zak Brown has revealed that he is 'uncomfortable' with the prospect of Max Verstappen driving for Mercedes next season. The Dutchman's future is unclear at Red Bull as his Drivers' Championship hopes continue to slip away. Verstappen went into the 2025 season with aspirations of matching Michael Schumacher's record of five successive Drivers' Championship titles, but the 27-year-old is now 61 points behind Oscar Piastri at the top of the leaderboard.

Worse still, the RB21's performance is heading in the wrong direction. The team's recent struggles have reignited speculation that Verstappen could leave Red Bull, and the Dutchman has been decidedly less clear-cut when addressing reports about links to Mercedes. Instead, he has peddled the narrative that his focus is on developing the RB21.

Previously, Aston Martin have been linked with a move for Verstappen after snatching Adrian Newey away from Red Bull, but Mercedes are now the clear frontrunners, should the reigning champion decide that a fresh start is needed.

For McLaren Racing CEO Brown, the preferred outcome of the saga is clear. "I think Mercedes is a team on the rise," he told the Sports Agents podcast ahead of the British Grand Prix. "Red Bull, at the moment, has challenges.

"It doesn't mean that they can't fix those challenges. But Max in a Mercedes is pretty uncomfortable to think about, because he's awesome! So, I think I'd rather him stay where he is. I think it would be a disaster for Red Bull if they lost Max."

Brown's fears are understandable. While Red Bull are on a downward trajectory, Mercedes remain capable of fighting for victories when the conditions are right. In Montreal, George Russell and Kimi Antonelli had the measure of their McLaren counterparts, securing the first win of the campaign for a driver outside of the Drivers' Championship's top three.

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However, a decision from Verstappen still seems a long way off at the moment as the 27-year-old fights tooth and nail to keep himself in the World Championship hunt. He was asked directly about the links with Mercedes ahead of Sunday's bout at Silverstone, but dodged the question.

"I have nothing else to add compared to what I said last week, to be honest," he said. "Last week, we didn't have a great result. I think it was not a great weekend, but also a bit unlucky in general.

"I don't say it because I [would have] been challenging McLaren, but we could have had a decent result. And everything that I've said that week is still the same. Nothing has changed from my side."