Albers says a Russell-Verstappen pairing 'wouldn't be effective'.

      Even with his notably strong current performance, George Russell could be racing to secure his future at Mercedes. It's significant that, although 18-year-old rookie Kimi Antonelli is clearly in a long-term contract with Toto Wolff, the established talent Russell is nearing the end of his own agreement. Team principal Wolff seems to be struggling with this situation—praising Russell as one of the top three talents in Formula 1 today, while carefully keeping the door open for a potential acquisition of Max Verstappen for 2026.

      The 27-year-old Russell is also making headlines off the track, suggesting that McLaren's current edge is even greater than Red Bull's recent dominance. Lando Norris responded in the Telegraph, saying, "I thought he was a bit smarter than that, but clearly not. George thinks he can play a lot of games, but I don’t fall for any of them."

      Until this year, Russell was primarily in Lewis Hamilton’s shadow at Mercedes, but he is now receiving recognition from analysts. Former F1 driver Christijan Albers commented to De Telegraaf, "I don’t think Russell is very cool, but he is performing quite well. He is fairly consistent, and he's always strong in qualifying. He is still Mr. Saturday. He was also really good in China."

      "What is Mercedes going to do with him? If they were truly confident in his abilities and viewed him as a superstar, they would have extended his contract a long time ago. Compared to other teams, their top drivers are secured for the long haul. I suspect Wolff will wait a few more races to see what transpires at Red Bull. It’s quite possible that Verstappen could become available, and Wolff might not want to miss that opportunity."

      Rumors suggest that Wolff extended a staggering offer of 100 million euros per year to Verstappen to join Mercedes over the winter, which was declined. "If things don’t pan out again, he will undoubtedly extend Russell's contract. But if he has a chance to get Verstappen, which is a realistic possibility, I believe Toto would pursue that. Additionally, I don’t think Toto would want to lose Antonelli after just one season."

      Another challenge for Russell, according to Albers, is his poor relationship with four-time world champion Verstappen. "That wouldn’t work out," he stated. "It’s evident that Toto is already collaborating with Zak Brown to explore various options. He’s also using Zak to make certain statements, making life difficult for Christian Horner."

      So, if Mercedes enters 2026 with a lineup of Verstappen and Antonelli, Albers predicts, "Then Russell could end up at Red Bull."