Max Verstappen snubs Mercedes again as Toto Wolff reportedly sent new contract offer for 2027

Max Verstappen has been linked over the past year on several occasions to be making the move from Red Bull to drive for Mercedes under the stewardship of Toto Wolff.

The Dutch driver owes a lot to Red Bull, as they gave him a seat in their Formula One team at the age of 17 with their sister team, Toro Rosso, as he lined up at the Australian Grand Prix in 2015.

Now, 11 years on, Verstappen has won four World Championships in the seat of the Red Bull, almost winning his fifth against all odds in the 2025 campaign only to relinquish his title to Lando Norris.

The 28-year-old's 2026 season has not gone as expected, as he currently sits seventh in the World Championship, 101 points behind leader Kimi Antonelli.

Being so far off the pace has led to further speculation that Verstappen may be exploring his options away from Red Bull, with Mercedes being seen as the team most interested in him.

Wolff has reinvented the Mercedes team, bringing them back to the front of the grid this season after a couple of years of playing catch-up, and it would make complete sense that he would want to establish another era of dominance like he had with Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton in the 2010s.

Max Verstappen speaks after the Canadian Grand Prix.

Former F1 driver Ralf Schumacher has now claimed that Wolff had attempted to make Verstappen part of his team for the 2027 campaign.

However, the German has claimed the offer was “so bad” financially that the 28-year-old was never going to accept the terms in the event that he did decide to leave Red Bull next year.

Schumacher claimed that the offer was “intentional” by the Mercedes team principal to explore the market despite the team having their two drivers fighting it out for the 2026 World Championship.

Schumacher told Sky Sports Germany: “There’s currently no room at Ferrari. At Mercedes, we hear that Toto Wolff made him an offer behind the scenes. But the offer was apparently so bad, financially speaking, that it’s completely out of the question.

“I think that’s intentional, because again, I’ve said it before, why would Toto Wolff, if everything goes as planned, get an expensive Max Verstappen alongside Kimi Antonelli, the future superstar?

“Then he’ll have two drivers in the team fighting against each other. He knows that feeling well from the Rosberg and Hamilton era. It’s like a hole in your head, and above all, it puts Kimi in danger. So, that makes absolutely no sense.”