Verstappen to McLaren? Piastri to Red Bull? It’s Not as Crazy as It Sounds
Max Verstappen in McLaren orange. Oscar Piastri in Red Bull blue. It sounds ridiculous, but GP Lambiase’s move has given F1’s wildest driver rumour enough weight to take seriously.
Quick Answer
Max Verstappen joining McLaren is possible, but there is nothing close to confirmation yet.
The rumour has survived because there are some real interesting facts underneath it. As we can see that, Red Bull is struggling, Max reportedly has a break clause, and his long-time race engineer Gianpiero “GP” Lambiase has already agreed to join McLaren.
Still, the timing matters. GP is staying with Red Bull through 2027 and joining McLaren in 2028, so this is not quite the simple “GP leaves, Max follows next season” story people are making it out to be. (Formula 1® - The Official F1® Website)
Why the Rumour Makes Sense
Most F1 rumours are built from one suspicious paddock photo and a journalist saying “sources suggest.”
This one at least has a few real pieces.
Lambiase has worked with Verstappen since Max joined Red Bull in 2016. They won four championships together, and Max has openly said their understanding and chemistry are difficult to replace. GP is not some random engineer Max speaks to twice on a Sunday. He has been the voice in Max’s ear throughout the most successful years of his career. (Formula 1® - The Official F1® Website)
Then there is Red Bull itself. Max is contracted until the end of 2028, but he is widely reported to have a break clause connected to his championship position. McLaren is one of the few teams that could offer him a car capable of winning immediately. (Reuters)
So yes, you can understand why people are connecting the dots.
But Would McLaren Really Drop Piastri?
This is where the theory becomes much messier.
The popular version looks like this:
Verstappen goes to McLaren. Piastri takes Max’s seat at Red Bull.
On paper, Red Bull would obviously be interested in Piastri. He is young, already proven and one of the few drivers who could replace Max without the move feeling like a complete surrender.
But there is currently no solid evidence that Piastri wants to leave McLaren. He says he has a contract, has received repeated reassurance from the team and is happy where he is. His manager, Mark Webber, called reports that Oscar is pushing to leave “nonsense” and said much of what has been written is fiction. (Reuters)
McLaren also has no obvious reason to blow up a Norris-Piastri lineup unless Verstappen genuinely becomes available and forces the conversation.
You probably do not reject Max Verstappen because replacing one of your current drivers feels awkward. But you also do not throw away Oscar Piastri based on a rumour and a nice PowerPoint presentation from Max’s management.
Does Max Follow GP or Retire?
This part is being overstated.
Max and GP are extremely close professionally, but drivers lose engineers. Teams replace important people. Even Verstappen said Red Bull is already looking for the best possible replacement and acknowledged that he will need to build that understanding with someone new. (Formula 1® - The Official F1® Website)
So there are more than two possibilities.
Max could stay at Red Bull with a new engineer. He could move to McLaren in 2027 and wait a year for GP. He could move somewhere else. He could eventually retire, especially given how often he talks about endurance racing and life outside Formula 1.
McLaren or retirement makes a great headline. Real life is usually more annoying than that.
The TGK Take
The Verstappen-to-McLaren rumour is believable enough to watch, but nowhere near strong enough to treat as an incoming deal.
GP joining McLaren gives the story some weight, Max’s reported exit clause gives him a route out. Red Bull’s performance gives him a reason to consider it.
The Piastri swap is still the weakest part. Until Oscar, McLaren or someone close to the negotiations says something different, it remains a very neat solution invented by people trying to complete the driver-market puzzle before the pieces are even on the table.
