Russell hints Verstappen exit clause in Mercedes contract admission

George Russell has revealed that he has no concern over his Mercedes contract, despite rumours that the F1 team could be interested in signing Max Verstappen.

The British driver’s contract with Mercedes expires at the end of this season, but he is no closer to extending his deal with the team, and after growing rumours that Verstappen could leave Red Bull, Russell has been pressed on the progress of his contract renewal.

“From my side there’s literally no stress, no worries whatsoever. I think when it comes to contracts everyone gets so excited about it,” Russell said on media day at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

“The fact is, drivers have had contracts and if they don’t perform they get booted out. For drivers, performance is our currency – that’s what we’ve got, and if you perform everything is good, so I’m just excited to go racing this weekend, focus on performance and the future sorts itself out.”

Will Mercedes re-sign Russell or go for Verstappen?

Following Helmut Marko’s comments about his ‘concern’ Verstappen could leave Red Bull, Mercedes team boss, Toto Wolff, set the record straight in Jeddah about his intentions for their 2026 lineup.

Wolff revealed he had not been in contact with Verstappen, and that he was committed to Mercedes’ current lineup of Russell and Kimi Antonelli, with the Brit already achieving three podium finishes in 2025.

Russell did not seem concerned that a contract decision had not been made and added: “At the end of the day we’ve never discussed a contract prior to May or June in a season.”

“I would say the more abnormal point is how many drivers have these long-term deals but everyone has got exit clauses – they’ve all got performance clauses, so a driver who is on a three-year contract, [it] doesn’t really mean anything if they’ve got an exit clause, or the team has an exit clause if the driver doesn’t perform.

“So, as I said, it doesn’t really mean a lot and if you’ve got a contract with a team but the team wants you gone, the team finds a way to get you gone.

“That’s how this sport works and how it should work, because we’re 20 of the best in the world and it’s ruthless, there’s no time to mess around. All you can do is focus on driving fast.”

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