Formula 1

Former Ferrari engineer would “100%” replace George Russell with Max Verstappen

Former Ferrari F1 engineer Rob Smedley has stated he would “100%” replace George Russell with Max Verstappen at Mercedes amid growing speculation surrounding Verstappen's future with Red Bull.

Lydia Mee

Published: May 13, 2025, 1:22 PM

Copy link

Share on Viber

Add as a preferred source

George Russell, Mercedes-AMG F1 Team, and Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, chat on the Pirelli hot laps grid

Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images

Former Ferrari Formula 1 engineer Rob Smedley has revealed that he would “100%” replace George Russell with Max Verstappen at Mercedes.

Rumours have been circulating for some time now that the four-time champion could be looking to part ways with Red Bull considering the current performance struggles. On top of the recent decline in performance, Adrian Newey’s exit to Aston Martin last year and Honda’s upcoming departure are adding to the speculation.

Although Verstappen is under contract with the Milton Keynes outfit until 2028, he has been linked numerous times to Mercedes.

During an appearance on the F1 Nation podcast, Smedley argued that although it was a “tough question,” he would sign Verstappen over current lead driver Russell if he was in Mercedes chief Toto Wolff’s position. He explained:

“Oh, that’s a very, very tough question because you’ve got a four-time world champion who is a guy who is one of those very, very special drivers and there’s very few of them who can drive over and above what the car can actually deliver. And he did that on Saturday in Miami and he did that at the start of the race.

“So if I was in a position to make this decision, which is what you’re actually asking me, would I want Max Verstappen in my car over anybody else on the grid right now?

“Yeah, 100% I would. No doubt.”

George Russell, Mercedes-AMG F1 Team, pole man Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, in the the post qualifying press conference

Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images

Former F1 champion Damon Hill has also recently discussed Verstappen’s future. He argued that some time out of the sport might be helpful for the Dutchman, giving him the opportunity to determine where each team is standing after the new regulations come into play. Hill explained:

“I mean, Red Bull are fighting to retain Max Verstappen. I mean, there is a clause in the contract. It’s been explained quite clearly that there’s a performance clause, and if they don’t match the performance clause, and let’s be honest, he’s never delivering less than 100%,” argued the 1996 world champion.

“If they don’t give him that, then he’s free to go wherever he wants. So, Red Bull are under pressure.Where can he go? I don’t know. George is on the verge of signing, they say, with Mercedes again, and then that’s that blocked out. I don’t know.

“I think he could. It might be a wise thing to do when you can see which way the wind’s going to blow after these new regulation changes. He’s young, he’s won four world championships, he’s won goodness how many races.

“Nobody knows what’s on the other side of the end of this season. What is going to happen? He could sit back next year and go, OK, I can see which way the future’s going to go for the next 10 years and whatever team is doing well will find the money to pay for having Max.”

Although Red Bull is facing some struggles, Verstappen is still third in the championship standings behind the two McLaren drivers, Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris.

We want your opinion!

What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?

Take our 5 minute survey.

- The Motorsport.com Team

Read and post comments

Share Or Save This Story

Copy link

Share on Viber

Previous article “Turbulent” Alpine drive will make Franco Colapinto stronger - Williams

Next article Mario Andretti reveals Cadillac F1 driver line-up options are "somewhat limited”

Top Comments

There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?

View More & Comment

Latest news

Kimi Antonelli: "Weird" spin and car instability cost F1 Brazilian GP win

Formula 1

F1 Formula 1

Sao Paulo GP

12 min

Kimi Antonelli: "Weird" spin and car instability cost F1 Brazilian GP win

Kimi Antonelli and Charles Leclerc summoned to stewards after F1 Brazilian GP

Formula 1

F1 Formula 1

Sao Paulo GP

1 h

Kimi Antonelli and Charles Leclerc summoned to stewards after F1 Brazilian GP

Jorge Martin will be "almost 100% fit" in Portugal as heroic Qatar display keeps title hopes alive

MotoGP

MGP MotoGP

Qatar GP

1 h

Jorge Martin will be "almost 100% fit" in Portugal as heroic Qatar display keeps title hopes alive

Five quick takeaways from Brazilian GP

Formula 1

F1 Formula 1

Sao Paulo GP

2 h

Five quick takeaways from Brazilian GP

Feature

Discover prime content

"He really wanted it" – why Russell was furious over aborted Brazil ‘pole’ lap

Formula 1

Sao Paulo GP

By Stuart Codling

"He really wanted it" – why Russell was furious over aborted Brazil ‘pole’ lap

What we learned from Friday practice at the 2026 Brazilian GP

Formula 1

Sao Paulo GP

By Jake Boxall-Legge

What we learned from Friday practice at the 2026 Brazilian GP

How F1’s rules got to be so complex

Formula 1

By Pat Symonds

How F1’s rules got to be so complex

A water park, “not a rock star” and Toto Wolff’s words – Is Kimi Antonelli really a different F1 champion?

Formula 1

By Ronald Vording

A water park, “not a rock star” and Toto Wolff’s words – Is Kimi Antonelli really a different F1 champion?

Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.

From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.

You have 2 options:

Become a subscriber.
Disable your adblocker.

Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here

Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page

Manage Alerts