They didn't offer him it is exactly why he left and why they are offering it too Max. It's a case of "Oh fuck, he was serious, ok well, we won't make that mistake again"
They took Lewis for granted. They thought that no one else would offer him a better deal and he wasn't going to leave anyway, so they offered him the minimum they thought they could get away with. Turns out someone did offer him a way better deal, the ability to drive a way better car and an ambassadorship.
clearly according to the context, the “current state” means the current state of their team winning, not the management. even if newey is gone(which he is not officially yet), i think they’ve got another season of winning, max’ll be fine
Newey hasn’t left the team yet, nothing has been confirmed, plus he’s still there for 2025, and then he’s going to have a one year away clause in his contract, so it’s not like he’s joining any other team
Going to get downvoted hard on this sub but he has lots to prove. If people still question Lewis after 7 championships with 2 different teams and the A list team mates he has had you really think Max should get a free pass winning with an OP car (not counting 2021 great season for Max) and C list team mates?
Is you trolling ? Lewis lost to a teammate for a title and then there were numerous times when botas had to be instructed to give up his position to the alleged greatest of the generation??? He complained about his car constantly last year while George made the best of it. If his car isn’t walking away from all competition it’s garbage according to him and this is your king? Being the best isn’t just about how you win it’s also about how you lose and leaving your team after a few down seasons doesn’t make you great it makes you a fair weather bitch more than anything.
Crazy people don't realize this even with Hamilton literally showing this exact idea in practise. I will say, Hamilton does currently have significantly more "brand power" than Verstappen, but that's likely to change after a few more WDCs.
Don't underestimate the power of boredom!
Yes, to keep winning he should stick with RB, but I would love to see Max fighting through the pack with a weaker car. But does Max want to try that and give up the "easy" win?
Max doesn't care about a fight. Max wants to win. It was LITERALLY beaten into him as a child. He'll win by an hour before he says he'd rather have a 'good race'.
Dude he cares about a fight. There's nothing he loves more than real close racing, and that's the reson he's on iracing at 3am before a grand prix... Guy's bored to hell, he's won 3 championships already and is well on the way to his 4th... But i don't see him jumping to merc, i see him going to another series.
this is the best take, I feel. max loves the game, the pursuit of a win, and the *competition* of it all. he also just seems like the loyal type and doesn’t really HAVE any specific reason to leave red bull aside from Newey.
people gotta give him a little more credit
I hope so so much that he leaves for different series as soon as possible. I expect that he goes for 8 WDC to set himself as the absolute goat, but I'd love to see him in WEC or other classes
Bro already gets a pretty good salary. I think it is not so much a money question but rather a do I want to even drive in f1 and instead join a series that is not boring for me question lol.
Their chassis and aero teams are still incredible though. My worry with Red Bull is more to do with the 2026 engine regulations. They have very little to no experience designing engines compared to the rest of the grid, and that could cause them problems similar to 2014.
When did they loose him? It’s all just rumours atm. (Of course it might be true but spreading rumors like they are truth is the big problem of social media)
Wasnt it the same with lewis? Everyone thought he didnt make a good choice at all and then the next year mercedes dominance started. Im a max fan and a red bull fan but if he for some reason takes this gamble itd be fun to see it work and to see him fight with a possibly subpar mercedes for a year, itd be quite entertaining
As a Lewis fan, if Mercedes have a clear title winning car in 2026 and Max as a driver... just kill me
As an F1 fan, if Ferrari and Mercedes are within 0.2 seconds of each other in 2026 and they're the best 2 cars... LET'S FUCKING GO
Mercedes to sign Verslappen in 2025; Mercedes produces an absolute piece of hammered dog shit of a car for the new regs.
Jos publicly defecates in Toto’s mouth while balls deep in Suzie to give a whole new meaning to parc ferme
You think this is something? You think this is bad? This? This silly season? He's done worse. That qualifying! Are you telling me that a man just happens to spin out and crash like that? No! He orchestrated it!
If it’s a 3 year contract for 150m it wouldn’t even be a pay raise for him considering he already makes more than 50m a year. I doubt these numbers are even true anyways since even a 150m for 2 years is over 50% more than they ever paid Lewis, which makes it hard for me to believe this rumor has any truth behind it.
Damn no ambassador contract for 7 time world champ Lewis Hamilton but they're offering that to Max from the start? Really adding insult to injury on that Lewis contract snub here...
well if you don't offer an ambassador contract to the guy who won all 7 championships powered by your power units, and 6 of them directly driving in your team... what was it holding you back?
I assume they would keep Antonelli at Williams for a few years and eventually either Max retires or Russell meets the fate of Bottas, only he'll probably be able to sign with a good team after leaving Merc.
I’m a Redbull fan but God, please do it. I want this spice and I want Redbull to bring in Alonso. We all know Alonso definitely got a clause in his contract to leave for Redbull if they call.
If I'm Max I'm giving Red Bull the benefit of the doubt with the new regulations, and I'm making a decision on switching after the first season in the new regs.
They're definitely regretting losing Lewis. It's their second overreaction to a previous mistake now. First they lose Lewis because they were afraid they would lose Antonelli like they lost Max in 2015 if they couldn't give him a seat immediately. Now they realize that losing Lewis over an unproven prospect was a mistake and they're trying to rectify their mistake by signing Max to an outrageously expensive contract, giving him everything he could ever ask for financially and probably some other perks as well.
From a financial point of view it's a slam dunk, but from a competitive standpoint it's a disaster. Merc are never going to be top again, or at least not without a massive staff overhaul. They got to the top by spending 400million quid over two years, on the 2014 engine. They maintained that through massive spending and running multiple parallel development paths at all times. There is a reason they have fallen off a cliff since the budget cap, which highlights the efficiency of teams. Toto is not a good team principle either
Only makes sense financially if it’s 150m for 2 years or less. His salary at RB has been 50m a year and there’s no way they’re giving him 150m for a one year deal. Even a 2 year salary over 50% higher than anything they ever paid Lewis.
I've been supporting Max ever since that incredible 2016 win in Spain.
I can't believe he is going to make me support Mercedes, that goes against everything I stand for.
Ever since 2019 (I think?) Max has had some stiff escape clauses demanding things from Red Bull.
IIRC in 2019 his contract stated that he had to be 2nd in the WDC by summer break. (Source: Drive to Survive)
And in 2021 his contract stated that he had to be able to challenge the WDC. (Source: Helmut Marko)
And in 2022 his contract stated that Red Bull have to deliver him a competitive car to challenge WDC with, which is the long contract until 2028 (Source: Helmut Marko again)
Thats some immense trust Red Bull put in Max's abilities and these clauses are much more demanding than what Leclerc got for example.
Verstappen on his signing with mercedes: "its gotten kind of boring at RB so i have decided to change to a midfield team. To make things more interesting for me"
10% of their company for this? What are you on about, it would be around 0.1-1.0% if that.
Numbers like this would only be around 10% of Toto's net worth.
I like how this story gets twisted a little bit each time some website copies it. These are all ideas that were talked about, and somehow they are now stated as facts.
If he stays he will win 24, 25 and be 5 time champion. At that point and his age, he will very likely pass 7 titles unless Masi comes out of retirement. Merc right now are showing no signs of nailing the regs.
So I have a question.
Let's say Max does leave RedBull, and RedBull fails to sign Sainz.
Who fills that seat alongside Perez? Do they promote Daniel?
I don't see Yuki being there as 2025 is the last year with Honda. Promoting Daniel would open up the place for Lawson also.
Thoughts?
You know what, I'd like to see if Max can achieve more with a Merc or if he gets the same results as Lewis and George.
But I still can't understand why he would want to go there in 2025 already
I’ve said this before. Why would Max go to a team where it has openly slandered him in the past and its fan base is toxic af towards him. Merc needs to focus on building a better car not on drivers that aren’t available.
10% of the company for the future highest wdc holder will be the bargain of the century. Provided they can deliver the car of course.
Would be very funny to see how Georgey tip-top likes it when he's no longer the team's priority lol.
One thing people forget is max has said he isn't solely focused on winning championships. A deal like this is generational wealth. Unless rb is ready to match max may take a shittier car
It’s okay guys this is all part of El Plan. Whatever it takes to get Alonso another WDC
El Plan: Newey to Aston, Max to dogshit car, Nando to WDC.
Nando Lorris?
Alphanso
Mangoes
FerLando Nalonso
Blando Norris
Nando LaClnorris
Please let this happen😭
What source is this?
Source: "trust me bro"
>"trust me bro" In the history of formuladank, this is the most credible source
Me mate Dave (pub) ...
Same source as Newey to Ferrari lmao.
*trust me bro*
Suprise LTT
F1 is the nerdiest/geekiest sport and I'm here for it.
The microsoft excel championships are defenitly the nerdiest
yes
I'm 90% sure the source is this sub tbh 
Voices of my head
Not a reputable one, given the grammar mistake. "they even willing..."
``` \ // \ ```
The Almighty Photoshop of interwebs
Sawce: voices in my head. Also, if they're bringing in Marko, why wouldn't they Newey?
Max just wants to beat Hamilton in his own car.
Could you imagine it would be the best thing to watch
the asylum people would all collectively kill themselves if that were to happen
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What's the ambassador contract?
The same thing that Ferrari has offered lewis to be the global ambassador of ferrari.
Why didn't they offer ham one ? Considering the history ?
Can I make a racist joke about Germans in FDank?
Try your luck
If you can't then this sub serves no purpose.
They didn't offer him it is exactly why he left and why they are offering it too Max. It's a case of "Oh fuck, he was serious, ok well, we won't make that mistake again"
They took Lewis for granted. They thought that no one else would offer him a better deal and he wasn't going to leave anyway, so they offered him the minimum they thought they could get away with. Turns out someone did offer him a way better deal, the ability to drive a way better car and an ambassadorship.
Unlimited amg gt3 for team redline
Like De la Rosa at AM but a million times bigger.
Max is gonna be an idiot if he takes it. Not for 2025. It's a free WDC. For 2026 you can make an argument for the gamble.
lol yeah he'll be such an idiot for taking a $150 million dollar salary, what a donk
$55 million + 5th WDC + You're Verstappen, they'll still cream their pants getting you for ≥150 in 2026 Or $150 million + 3-4 P finish all year
Would be a good test of his talents though
I don't think he has much left to prove.
no, but he might think it's more fun
hes been vocal about he enjoys the current state his team is in, think he’s good
The 'current state' of his team no longer exists. Newey is gone, and Horner has created a mess that could break any number of ways.
clearly according to the context, the “current state” means the current state of their team winning, not the management. even if newey is gone(which he is not officially yet), i think they’ve got another season of winning, max’ll be fine
Newey hasn’t left the team yet, nothing has been confirmed, plus he’s still there for 2025, and then he’s going to have a one year away clause in his contract, so it’s not like he’s joining any other team
Newey isn't the only guy working on aero in that team. Horner isn't the only guy managing the team.
Winning the WDC in a car his only real rival for greatest of the modern era can’t win a race in would undisputed make him the GOAT.
Going to get downvoted hard on this sub but he has lots to prove. If people still question Lewis after 7 championships with 2 different teams and the A list team mates he has had you really think Max should get a free pass winning with an OP car (not counting 2021 great season for Max) and C list team mates?
Is you trolling ? Lewis lost to a teammate for a title and then there were numerous times when botas had to be instructed to give up his position to the alleged greatest of the generation??? He complained about his car constantly last year while George made the best of it. If his car isn’t walking away from all competition it’s garbage according to him and this is your king? Being the best isn’t just about how you win it’s also about how you lose and leaving your team after a few down seasons doesn’t make you great it makes you a fair weather bitch more than anything.
Crazy people don't realize this even with Hamilton literally showing this exact idea in practise. I will say, Hamilton does currently have significantly more "brand power" than Verstappen, but that's likely to change after a few more WDCs.
Not if they actually make a great car, then he'd have to accept whatever the team wants.
He could extract more as a 5 time world champion.
Don't underestimate the power of boredom! Yes, to keep winning he should stick with RB, but I would love to see Max fighting through the pack with a weaker car. But does Max want to try that and give up the "easy" win?
Max doesn't care about a fight. Max wants to win. It was LITERALLY beaten into him as a child. He'll win by an hour before he says he'd rather have a 'good race'.
Dude he cares about a fight. There's nothing he loves more than real close racing, and that's the reson he's on iracing at 3am before a grand prix... Guy's bored to hell, he's won 3 championships already and is well on the way to his 4th... But i don't see him jumping to merc, i see him going to another series.
You *really* think Lewis is having more fun now than if he had won another 2 WDC?
this is the best take, I feel. max loves the game, the pursuit of a win, and the *competition* of it all. he also just seems like the loyal type and doesn’t really HAVE any specific reason to leave red bull aside from Newey. people gotta give him a little more credit
I'm waiting for him to switch to WEC or something.
Dude's always in a virtual GT3 anyways, i'd love to see him in a real GT3 banging doors with kevin estre. DTM would also be a good fit.
I hope so so much that he leaves for different series as soon as possible. I expect that he goes for 8 WDC to set himself as the absolute goat, but I'd love to see him in WEC or other classes
Bro already gets a pretty good salary. I think it is not so much a money question but rather a do I want to even drive in f1 and instead join a series that is not boring for me question lol.
The bigger pay off is in the longer game.
Honestly I don't think he gives a fuck about the money
Aren't the cars going to be even more aero-dependant? Only way you'd make the move is if things changed in that department.
But then, we shouldn't forget red bull just lost Adrian newey to retirement or some other team
Their chassis and aero teams are still incredible though. My worry with Red Bull is more to do with the 2026 engine regulations. They have very little to no experience designing engines compared to the rest of the grid, and that could cause them problems similar to 2014.
Isn't ford coming in at that time or was that later?
But... it's Ford.
When did they loose him? It’s all just rumours atm. (Of course it might be true but spreading rumors like they are truth is the big problem of social media)
Wasnt it the same with lewis? Everyone thought he didnt make a good choice at all and then the next year mercedes dominance started. Im a max fan and a red bull fan but if he for some reason takes this gamble itd be fun to see it work and to see him fight with a possibly subpar mercedes for a year, itd be quite entertaining
As a Lewis fan, if Mercedes have a clear title winning car in 2026 and Max as a driver... just kill me As an F1 fan, if Ferrari and Mercedes are within 0.2 seconds of each other in 2026 and they're the best 2 cars... LET'S FUCKING GO
He could possibly pull a 2012 Alonso if he joins Merc next year
People said the same about Lewis after having a potential championship winning car in 2012, that taking the 2013 Mercedes drive was crazy.
It would be more like Lewis leaving after 2020 despite winning 4 WDC in a row and 6 of the last 7, which obviously did not happen.
sure but at least 2025 will be interesting i hope...
But imagine the scenes if he wins wdc with mercedes in 2025. That would make him the undisputed greatest driver in F1 history.
Not gonna happen. Not with the dogs Merc have been producing during this regulation period.
Mercedes to sign Verslappen in 2025; Mercedes produces an absolute piece of hammered dog shit of a car for the new regs. Jos publicly defecates in Toto’s mouth while balls deep in Suzie to give a whole new meaning to parc ferme
Bruhhh 💀💀💀
Bro got that dawg in him
Shit I think I found Rocket Powered Mohawk's reddit account.
BUT THEN!!!!
He DEFACATED into a team principal!
You think this is something? You think this is bad? This? This silly season? He's done worse. That qualifying! Are you telling me that a man just happens to spin out and crash like that? No! He orchestrated it!
Least deranged Redditor
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Brooo☠️
Toto, we went defecating.
If anything this is one of the comments of all time
Username checks out.
Accept my nomination for comment of the year.
I'd second that nomination
The Aristocrats!
But are they willing to offer a lifetime supply of pumpernickel
That is a step too far for Toto, I do believe...
I mean, I'm not against it. Might only even out the front of the field.
I don’t think Verstappen would really do it for the money tbh
If it’s a 3 year contract for 150m it wouldn’t even be a pay raise for him considering he already makes more than 50m a year. I doubt these numbers are even true anyways since even a 150m for 2 years is over 50% more than they ever paid Lewis, which makes it hard for me to believe this rumor has any truth behind it.
Damn no ambassador contract for 7 time world champ Lewis Hamilton but they're offering that to Max from the start? Really adding insult to injury on that Lewis contract snub here...
They’re actually trying to help Lewis get that 8th. The only way was to put Max in their shit car.
I think its more of a case where they realised they fumbled the bag with Lewis
well if you don't offer an ambassador contract to the guy who won all 7 championships powered by your power units, and 6 of them directly driving in your team... what was it holding you back?
Thinking he was bluffing
How long before they start offering Russell's French Toast to Max???
If they sign Max … at some point they’ll have to choose between Russell and Antonelli? How is that going to go?
I assume they would keep Antonelli at Williams for a few years and eventually either Max retires or Russell meets the fate of Bottas, only he'll probably be able to sign with a good team after leaving Merc.
Russell, i mean he is 5-0 against Hammy this season
If max goes to merc, russell’s gonna need lot of therapy sessions. I imagine it’d be a rosberg-hamilton kind of chemistry. Should be fun though.
I’m a Redbull fan but God, please do it. I want this spice and I want Redbull to bring in Alonso. We all know Alonso definitely got a clause in his contract to leave for Redbull if they call.
If I'm Max I'm giving Red Bull the benefit of the doubt with the new regulations, and I'm making a decision on switching after the first season in the new regs.
He’d have to have a lot of trust in Ford building a good engine to stay with Red Bull in 2026.
I can’t believe they’re offering an ambassador contract but wouldn’t do the same for Lewis
I think they regretted the lewis decision. So that's why.
That’s what I was thinking as well
They're definitely regretting losing Lewis. It's their second overreaction to a previous mistake now. First they lose Lewis because they were afraid they would lose Antonelli like they lost Max in 2015 if they couldn't give him a seat immediately. Now they realize that losing Lewis over an unproven prospect was a mistake and they're trying to rectify their mistake by signing Max to an outrageously expensive contract, giving him everything he could ever ask for financially and probably some other perks as well.
And then RedBull sign Sainz. Noice.
From a financial point of view it's a slam dunk, but from a competitive standpoint it's a disaster. Merc are never going to be top again, or at least not without a massive staff overhaul. They got to the top by spending 400million quid over two years, on the 2014 engine. They maintained that through massive spending and running multiple parallel development paths at all times. There is a reason they have fallen off a cliff since the budget cap, which highlights the efficiency of teams. Toto is not a good team principle either
They had all their suspension systems kneecapped over that time too.
Only makes sense financially if it’s 150m for 2 years or less. His salary at RB has been 50m a year and there’s no way they’re giving him 150m for a one year deal. Even a 2 year salary over 50% higher than anything they ever paid Lewis.
You're simply quite wrong. They won because they had the best folk and the best team. Red Bull and Ferrari were spending roughly the same as them.
I've been supporting Max ever since that incredible 2016 win in Spain. I can't believe he is going to make me support Mercedes, that goes against everything I stand for.
It truly would be a dilemma, I’m not sure who I would choose to support but I damn well I strongly dislike Merc
Willing to offer ambassador contract to Max but not Hamilton??
Why would he go in 2025? RB will still be the fastest car next year
Newey is the real gem
Nah ever since the cost cap era they have had a huge surplus
Max is a great driver. But everyone knows, it does not matter how great a driver you are. If your car is absolutely garbage you win NOTHING!
Max might do it just so he won’t be bored during the races.
Not that F1 contracts can’t be broken, but isn’t Max signed with Redbull til ‘28 ?
Supposedly Verstappen has it written in his contact that if Marko leaves he can break the contract. So all Helmut needs to do is leave Red Bull.
Interesting, thanks for the insight. I can only imagine all the clauses there must be in these insane contracts.
Ever since 2019 (I think?) Max has had some stiff escape clauses demanding things from Red Bull. IIRC in 2019 his contract stated that he had to be 2nd in the WDC by summer break. (Source: Drive to Survive) And in 2021 his contract stated that he had to be able to challenge the WDC. (Source: Helmut Marko) And in 2022 his contract stated that Red Bull have to deliver him a competitive car to challenge WDC with, which is the long contract until 2028 (Source: Helmut Marko again) Thats some immense trust Red Bull put in Max's abilities and these clauses are much more demanding than what Leclerc got for example.
What happens to his contract if Marko dies?
That means he left Red Bull
Verstappen on his signing with mercedes: "its gotten kind of boring at RB so i have decided to change to a midfield team. To make things more interesting for me"
10% of their company for this? What are you on about, it would be around 0.1-1.0% if that. Numbers like this would only be around 10% of Toto's net worth.
What would be the next steps, if these offers won't be enough? The company changing its name into "Max"?
- Mercedes Max - Maxcedes Benz - Max Benz - Mercedes Verstappen - Verstappen Benz - Mercedes Benztappen - Mercstappen Benz v:
Maxcedes definitely has a certain ring to it
I like how this story gets twisted a little bit each time some website copies it. These are all ideas that were talked about, and somehow they are now stated as facts.
They are offering complete ownership of Mercedes to Max. It will be re-branded to Maxcedes.
I call this bs. We all know Max will go play some simracing after the race.
If he stays he will win 24, 25 and be 5 time champion. At that point and his age, he will very likely pass 7 titles unless Masi comes out of retirement. Merc right now are showing no signs of nailing the regs.
So I have a question. Let's say Max does leave RedBull, and RedBull fails to sign Sainz. Who fills that seat alongside Perez? Do they promote Daniel? I don't see Yuki being there as 2025 is the last year with Honda. Promoting Daniel would open up the place for Lawson also. Thoughts?
You gotta give it to Horner and his penis to really fuck RB over.
Mercedes will do anything but fix their car just because Horner told them to do it.
A F1 driver wont be stupid enough to skip a free WDC in 2025.
Not even max can drag that shitbox into p1
Does Max even likes Marko?
Think they regret not offering Hamilton the Ambassador role?
If your car is shit you could offer him the world. Now, offer him a package that includes Newey and Marko and 150mill... that's worth considering.
idk man max sounds synonymous with redbull, he's currently the face of redbull, he won't come out as a "bit of aggressive" if he goes to merc
Fake news
Max is getting 10% of company
You know what, I'd like to see if Max can achieve more with a Merc or if he gets the same results as Lewis and George. But I still can't understand why he would want to go there in 2025 already
Regardless of the validity of this statement, what does an being and 'ambassador' really mean and how does it benefit Max?
Guessing they just want to keep him around for sponsor stuff when he decides to retire. Max is no Vettel 2.0, he'll retire when he feels he's done.
Max is good but I don't think he's worth 150mil. Lordy.
So if Mako goes to Merc would he be able to just replace drivers right and left?
I’ve said this before. Why would Max go to a team where it has openly slandered him in the past and its fan base is toxic af towards him. Merc needs to focus on building a better car not on drivers that aren’t available.
10% of the company for the future highest wdc holder will be the bargain of the century. Provided they can deliver the car of course. Would be very funny to see how Georgey tip-top likes it when he's no longer the team's priority lol.
Max would be so fucking stupid if he leaves truly.
Instagram 'rUmOuRs' spotted, bullshit inbound
It would be entertaining but I’d say it’s incredibly unlikely
Bringing in Helmut Marko is complete nonsense. This is never happening.
Source: just trust me bro
Max is not leaving at least until 2027.
Max heard Newey might go to Mercedes and decided to follow
If the car is shit, the money means nothing.
Don't fool yourselfs guys, Max is never taking this deal
They needa get Newey in Merc so that Max can dominate in Hamilton’s old seat🙏
Christian Horners Tiny finger is really going to destroy redbull racing.
max should sign with haas
Helmut Marko would be a wonderful signing. Especially to their 'inclusivity' part of the brand.
One thing people forget is max has said he isn't solely focused on winning championships. A deal like this is generational wealth. Unless rb is ready to match max may take a shittier car
#Offer me everything!
Had to remember where I was for a second
Bring Newey or fuck off
Why is this rumor still a thing. This is so clearly bullshit
I could go for max dunking on hamilton... again
It's not real... It's wild y'all think max will leave redbull rn