Swapping Honda for Red Bull-Ford power in F1 2026, Red Bull could be running “where Williams is” with Juan Pablo Montoya saying that’s something Max Verstappen has to consider when he contemplates his F1 future.

Although Verstappen has a contract with Red Bull that runs through to 2028, the Dutchman’s future is once again dominating the news cycle as he’s been linked to Mercedes, Aston Martin and even Alpine.

Max Verstappen needs to factor engines into his F1 2026 decision

It has been speculated that Verstappen is free to leave Red Bull for F1 2026 if he is lower than third in the Drivers’ Championship after a certain point in this campaign, that point said to be the summer break.

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner confirmed to the media, including PlanetF1.com, that such a performance clause is in place, but he would not go into details about its exact wording.

Mercedes have been strongly linked with a move for Verstappen, with team boss Toto Wolff publicly courting the driver for much of last year before eventually signing Kimi Antonelli as Lewis Hamilton’s replacement.

It was however, a one-year deal and Mercedes therefore have, at least today, two seats available for next season as George Russell’s contract expires at the end of this season.

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But it is not just Mercedes who are keen on Verstappen, as a report in Italy claims Aston Martin have put together a $300 million purse to entice Verstappen to the British team.

But ahead of arguably Formula 1’s biggest overhaul ever, with the sport not only introducing new cars but also new engines in F1 2026, there are a lot of unknowns on the table – and not just for Verstappen.

Never mind fitting a new engine in their Formula 1 car, next year’s Red Bull power unit will be the first-ever designed by the Milton Keynes squad’s Red Bull Powertrains division, in conjunction with Ford.

The team has talked it up, Horner saying they are “making good progress with the engine” and are “doing well”, but whispers in the paddock suggest Mercedes may once again, as they did in 2014, have the advantage in the early engine battle.

It has Montoya claiming Red Bull, with their all-new power unit, could find themselves racing in the midfield at best next season.

“They have an engine power unit for next year that nobody knows how good it is at this point,” the former McLaren driver told Instant Casino.

“Red Bull next year could be running where Williams is running.”

And that is something Verstappen has to consider when deciding his 2026 plans.

The Dutchman definitely won’t be joining McLaren as they have Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri signed and confirmed for F1 2026, leaving Mercedes as his best option should he decide to try his luck at a new team.

It has Montoya suggesting there could even be a straight swap if Verstappen went to Mercedes with either Russell or Antonelli replacing him at Red Bull. He, though, does not want to be in Wolff’s position and have to decide who – Russell or Antonelli – to let go.

“The hard thing is,” Montoya continued, “McLaren just re-signed Piastri.

“Would Toto get rid of Antonelli to accommodate Max? Or would you get rid of George? I don’t know how clear the option is there.

“Basically, if Max went to Mercedes, whoever left Mercedes would go to Red Bull, in my opinion.

“If you had to make a decision tomorrow, would you get rid of George? George has been a Mercedes guy for a long time.

“It’s not like the only eyes were for Antonelli. And Antonelli’s done a very good job being a rookie.

“So the question is, do you want to pair George with Max? Do you want to pair Max with Antonelli?”

But, and here’s the crux for the former F1 driver, would Wolff be so keen to sign Verstappen that he would let go of either Russell or Antonelli given their impressive F1 2025 performances?

“Or,” Montoya continued, “you decide to stay where you are and don’t take Max? That could happen. I know Toto was desperate to have Max last year. Is he still desperate this year to have Max? I’m not so sure.”

Russell weighed in on the Verstappen debate earlier this month, stating he would understand Wolff wanting the Dutchman and that he’d personally would have no problem partnering the four-time World Champion.

“Why wouldn’t they want to sign Max? It’s totally understandable,” Russell told the Press Association on the Verstappen to Mercedes talk.

“He’s the best at the moment. He’s a four-time World Champion. That’s not anything against me or Kimi. There’s two drivers for every team and he is one person.

“So that doesn’t concern me one bit because the performance is my currency and right now I think I am performing as good as anyone on this grid.”

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