Toto Wolff and Max Verstappen have added fuel to the persistent rumors linking the four-time World Champion with a future move to Mercedes. On Wednesday (July 29), the pair were spotted enjoying Formula 1’s summer shutdown together in Sardinia, an Italian island in the Mediterranean Sea.
Following the Hungarian Grand Prix, the majority of the paddock—excluding those involved in Pirelli tire testing—packed their bags for a month-long break ahead of the Dutch Grand Prix on August 23. As driver holiday photos surfaced across social media, images emerged showing the Red Bull star and the Silver Arrows chief accompanied by their respective partners, Kelly Piquet and Susie Wolff.
The sighting is not unprecedented. In 2025, when rumors connecting Verstappen to Mercedes were at a peak, the Dutchman was photographed alongside Wolff on a yacht in Sardinia—a popular summer retreat for F1 figures.
Last December, long after their previous August encounter, Max offered a lighthearted explanation during an interview with Swedish streaming service Viaplay. “I had already made it clear I was staying at Red Bull, but the fact that Toto and I were vacationing next to each other obviously didn’t help. We both love Sardinia, but when I arrived, I thought: ‘Oh, crap,'” he recalled with a laugh.
It remains unclear whether this latest encounter was another coincidence or a planned holiday meeting. Crucially, Verstappen has avoided committing to Red Bull for the 2027 season, despite holding a contract valid through 2028. However, should a split materialize, recent paddock reports have also pointed to McLaren as a potential destination.
Despite Red Bull’s new power unit being rated as the strongest on the grid under the FIA’s ADUO (Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities) ranking, the Milton Keynes-based squad has struggled to consistently challenge its main rivals for victories, raising further questions about the #3 driver’s long-term plans.
Recently at the Belgian GP, Jos Verstappen and Raymond Vermeulen—Max’s father and manager, respectively—visited the McLaren motorhome. The official reason provided was a meeting with Dries Van Langendonck, a Belgian driver from McLaren’s development program who was recently announced as the newest member of Verstappen Racing.
For his part, the four-time champion has repeatedly stated his desire to remain at Red Bull, provided the team delivers a fully competitive package. “Max wants to finish his career cycle at Red Bull. He has a contract through 2028 and wants to honor it. The exit clause exists, but having it doesn’t mean we will trigger it. We could have activated it in previous years, and we chose not to,” his manager told Austrian newspaper OE24.
Meanwhile in Hungary, round 11 of the championship, Wolff was asked by Sky Sports Germany about the possibility of pairing Verstappen alongside Andrea Kimi Antonelli at Mercedes in the future. The Austrian executive insisted he “has no fear of putting both drivers in the same team,” dismissing concerns of a friction-heavy rivalry similar to the one between Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg a decade ago.
Formula 1 is currently on its summer break. The series resumes its 2026 season activities from August 21 to 23 with the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort.
