Max Verstappen receives 'consultant' offer from F1 rival in Mercedes quip

Fernando Alonso has jokingly offered to act as a 'consultant' for Max Verstappen over his potential move to Mercedes. Speculation is mounting that the reigning world champion will end his stay with Red Bull at the end of the 2025 season, having first joined the team's development programme at the age of 17.

His current contract runs until the conclusion of the 2028 campaign. However, the deal is said to contain a performance-related release clause that the Dutchman can activate if certain expectations are not met. It's already been a chaotic summer at Red Bull following the departure of team principal Christian Horner.

Despite Verstappen paying a glowing social media tribute following Horner's departure, his father Jos had long been at odds with the Englishman. Verstappen Snr publicly called for him to be removed after he was accused of inappropriate behaviour towards a female employee last season.

The 51-year-old, who denied the allegations throughout, was subsequently cleared after an internal investigation. However, he's now been removed due to the team's poor start to the season, as they struggle to keep pace with front-runners McLaren.

That development isn't likely to affect Verstappen's potential move. Alonso has now weighed in on the saga by making a tongue-in-cheek offer to his rival.

Asked if he has any advice for the star, he replied: "No advice." He then added: "I can be a consultant, but they need to pay a huge amount of money."

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The Aston Martin man has had his own struggles this year, failing to score points in any of the first eight Grand Prix races. However, he's now notched four consecutive top-10 finishes and was ninth in Silverstone before the summer break.

Verstappen has been publicly coy about his future. However, he has denied that the new F1 regulations in 2026 will affect his decision-making process.