Ralf Schumacher: Mercedes made Verstappen an offer, but the terms were not attractive

Despite being under contract with Red Bull, Verstappen continues to be linked with a move elsewhere, having repeatedly voiced his frustration with the current direction of Formula 1 and its regulations.

Former F1 driver Ralf Schumacher has now claimed that Mercedes boss Toto Wolff made a private approach to the Dutchman, but that the offer on the table was far from convincing.

“There’s no spot at Ferrari right now,” Schumacher told the Backstage Boxengasse podcast.

“And at Mercedes, you hear that Wolff has made him an offer behind the scenes. But that offer was apparently so bad financially that it’s not an option anyway. That’s apparently what’s going on behind the scenes right now,” the former F1 driver added.

Mercedes has enjoyed a dominant start to the 2026 campaign, winning six of the opening seven races and establishing itself as one of the teams to beat. Much of that success has been driven by Kimi Antonelli, whose impressive form has put him firmly in the championship fight.

Schumacher believes Mercedes' reported low financial offer to Verstappen may have been a calculated move rather than a genuine attempt to secure his services. In his view, Wolff is reluctant to disrupt the team's long-term plans by pairing Antonelli with one of the sport's biggest stars.

“I believe this is intentional. I’ve said it before: why would Wolff bring in the expensive Max Verstappen alongside Kimi Antonelli - the next superstar if everything goes according to plan? Then he’d have two drivers on the team fighting each other. He remembers that well from the days of Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton, and that’s the last thing you want. Above all, he’d be putting Kimi at risk. So that actually makes no sense at all," Schumacher concluded.