Jenson Button believes Mercedes could be higher off dropping Kimi Antonelli from its Components 1 line-up subsequent yr, relatively than George Russell, ought to it determine to poach Max Verstappen from Crimson Bull.
Verstappen has as soon as once more been linked to Mercedes in current weeks amid Crimson Bull’s struggles throughout the first half of the 2025 season.
Though the Dutchman is contracted to Crimson Bull till the tip of 2028, his place within the championship on the summer season break may enable him to activate an exit clause and terminate his deal early.
Initially, it was anticipated that Russell could be the one to lose his seat if Mercedes pursued Verstappen, particularly as he has but to be supplied a brand new contract for 2026. Antonelli’s place was extensively considered as safe, given he’s being seen as a future star of Mercedes’s F1 programme.
Nevertheless, 2009 F1 champion Button believes it might be mistaken for Mercedes to half methods with Russell, not simply due to his sturdy performances alongside Lewis Hamilton over their three seasons collectively, but additionally for the management position he has performed this yr.
Regardless of the W16 being removed from probably the most aggressive automotive on the grid, Russell claimed victory in Canada and secured 4 different podium finishes within the opening 12 races of the season.
“It is a powerful one on George, as a result of George is on the prime of his recreation,” Button stated on The Chris Moyles Present on Radio X.
“I feel he is been so aggressive. If you see what he did in opposition to Lewis [Hamilton] in the previous couple of years, he’s World Championship materials.
“So, to exchange Max with him, it simply looks as if a wierd transfer. I do know they have the younger Kimi Antonelli, who’s 18, who could possibly be a future star. However we nonetheless do not know that.
“Whereas George is there, he’s good, and also you want two very aggressive drivers with this new period of the game. Subsequent yr, clearly plenty of regulation adjustments, automotive change, engine change. So, for me, George and Max could be a greater line-up.”
Verstappen and Russell have shared a tense relationship each on and off observe, which may spark friction at Mercedes in the event that they had been to turn out to be teammates.
Requested whether or not such a partnership may work, Button stated: “I’d like to see it!”
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The place may Antonelli go if Mercedes drops him?
It’s extremely unlikely that Mercedes would fully half methods with Antonelli, given it has nurtured him from his early years in racing.
The group’s eagerness to signal the Italian teen stemmed partially from its remorse over lacking out on Verstappen almost a decade in the past.
Up to now, Mercedes had the choice to position its junior drivers with its engine clients, most notably Williams. Russell, for instance, spent three seasons on the Grove-based outfit earlier than being promoted to associate Hamilton in 2022.
Nevertheless, Williams now harbours far higher ambitions than it did only a few years in the past, and already has long-term contracts in place with two confirmed drivers: Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz.
That leaves Mercedes with restricted choices to safe Antonelli a spot elsewhere on the grid, ought to it select to accommodate Verstappen in 2026.
Jenson Button on Max Verstappen’s future
Mercedes is successfully caught in a holding sample till Verstappen makes up his thoughts about his future in F1. Crimson Bull’s shock sacking of Christian Horner after the British Grand Prix has added one other layer of uncertainty, and it stays unclear how which may have an effect on Verstappen’s resolution.
Button believes Verstappen now finds himself in a dilemma, as leaving a group constructed completely round him comes with main dangers.
“It is a difficult one for Max, as a result of he is able the place he is doing so effectively with Crimson Bull – they’ve given him a lot over time,” stated Button.
“They’ve designed this automotive round him, and he is extraordinarily good at it. No one can match him in that automotive.
“They’re to this point off him. I imply, him qualifying third or fourth, and them qualifying 18th. If he goes to Mercedes, it is a totally different factor altogether. , that automotive shouldn’t be going to be designed round him. So, is it going to work for him? I do not know.
“I imply, the most effective on the planet ought to be capable of make that work for him.”
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