Former McLaren champion thinks Williams could be Verstappen's next team
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The 2025 Formula 1 grid has only recently been completed and already wild speculations about the future are coming about. Marc Priestley, former mechanic at McLaren, thinks four time world champion could jump Red Bull Racing's ship if the car is not up to championship standards. However, the destination Priestley suggests is what makes this theory "remarkable."
Speculation on Verstappen's future in 2024 was plentiful, what with the internal power strife at Red Bull and the RB20 not being as competitive as its predecessors, Verstappen was constanty linked to a potential Red Bull Racing exit. In the end, the Dutchman did still manage to win his fourth F1 drivers' title, nevertheless McLaren, Ferrari and also Mercedes also took a ferocious fight to him on several ocassions. Priestley makes a remarkable suggestion for a potential future destination were Verstappen to leave Red Bull Racing: Williams.
'Williams could make the best car in 2026'
In 2026, the chassis, aero, and also engine regulations will be considerably shaken up. This provides plenty of opportunities for a number of teams to make a big jump up the order, and Priestley sees opportunities for Williams. "The drivers market is so complicated at the moment because everyone is basing their move on the regulation changes in 2026. You have to choose the team you think will produce the best car, it could be a team like Williams," Priestley stated to Casino Uden Rofus, while at the same time understanding that choosing a team with 2026 in mind could be a "tough call."
"If you’re Max Verstappen, you’d look at McLaren but they have two young drivers for years to come, Mercedes are not at the top at the moment but everyone knows they’re a solid team and very good operators," Priestley added.
Is Verstappen looking for a place to go?
Priestley added that Verstappen and his entourage - father Jos Verstappen and manager Raymond Vermeulen - had held talks with Mercedes. In the end, Verstappen chose to reaffirm his commitment to Red Bull Racing, so Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff had to promote F2 rookie, Andrea Kimi Antonelli, to replace Ferrari bound, Lewis Hamilton. If Mercedes wasn't an option, could Williams under Chief James Vowles' direction be one? "We also know Verstappen has had a lot of talks with Mercedes. You could also look at Williams who, under the leadership of James Vowles, are building heavily towards 2026 with big expectations. I know for a fact they expect to compete right at the top with the best teams on the grid, maybe it’s an opportunity for Verstappen."
Needless to say, 2025 will be a crucial year for Red Bull and Priestley can see Verstappen jumping ship to another team if the RB21 is not competitive enough to vy for the drivers' championship. "If Red Bull suddenly drop to a mid-table team in 2026, Verstappen will start asking himself questions. I can see him hang up his boots then. But, maybe he’ll see a decline at Red Bull before 2026 and join a new team ahead of the regulation changes, like Lewis Hamilton has done by joining Ferrari. It’s like any of us changing jobs, it’s exciting at the beginning," the former McLaren mechanic concluded.
This article was made with the collaboration of Jeroen Immink
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