The 2025 World Championship was only decided at the final race of the season, resulting in a maiden world title for Lando Norris. The McLaren driver finished with a narrow two-point lead over Max Verstappen, who had managed to claw back ground on both Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri in the closing stages of the year, applying constant pressure right until the final checkered flag. However, these successes and positive weekends were far harder to come by in mid-2025, when Max Verstappen’s efforts were hampered by a significant performance crisis at Red Bull.
The ‘paparazzi’ in Sardinia
Despite repeatedly guaranteeing his desire to remain in Milton Keynes—even amidst the difficulties that fueled constant rumors of a potential switch to Mercedes—speculation regarding a contract with the Anglo-German team spiked this past summer. The catalyst was a series of photographs published by the weekly magazine Autosprint. During the summer break, Verstappen had traveled to Sardinia for his holidays, where he was spotted boarding the ‘Mangusta’ yacht, owned by Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff.
The images of the Dutchman in the company of the Austrian manager quickly went viral, sparking a wave of fan-made caricatures depicting the champion in Mercedes racing overalls. However, some eagle-eyed fans noted that Max Verstappen had simply happened to moor his own boat at Cala di Volpe, in the Gallura region, in close proximity to Wolff’s vessel.
Verstappen’s reaction to the encounter
Months after the episode, the Red Bull star shared the story of that encounter with Viaplay: “I had clearly stated that I would be staying with Red Bull, but the fact that Toto and I were on vacation right next to each other certainly didn’t help. I love Sardinia, he loves Sardinia, but when I arrived, I thought: ‘Oh s***.’”
Despite the awkward timing given the transfer rumors, the two maintained a friendly relationship. “I said hello to him, we had lunch together, and the children played together. When you’re there, you talk about everything except Formula 1. A lot has changed since 2021; we get along very well,” concluded Max Verstappen, whose current Red Bull contract runs until 2028. “You can have great conversations with him and with Susie.”
As the sport moves toward the 2026 regulations, the relationship between Max Verstappen and the Mercedes leadership remains a point of fascination for fans. While his immediate future is tied to Red Bull, this summer “coincidence” in the Mediterranean serves as a reminder that in the world of F1, even a simple lunch between rivals can set the entire paddock abuzz.
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