So Max Verstappen signed his new long-term deal with Red Bull before the Dutch Grand Prix, but apparently it wasn't a done deal from the start. With Mercedes and Ferrari both ruling out driver changes, the reigning champ and his team had a proper look around at what else was out there. McLaren made the shortlist, even though they were quick to say they were locked in with Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris. But according to F1 pundit Ralf Schumacher, there was a massive trust issue that stopped any serious move from happening.

Here's where it gets juicy. Schumacher reckons Verstappen's camp had serious doubts about McLaren's Mercedes engine partnership. Yeah, McLaren's got best-in-class Mercedes engines on paper, which sounds brilliant. But Verstappen apparently didn't believe they could actually squeeze the maximum out of it. McLaren's Andrea Stella and Zak Brown have already complained about a lack of support in year one of the new regs, even though they're getting identical hardware to Mercedes themselves. That didn't inspire confidence.

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Then there's the money side. Verstappen's one of the highest-paid athletes on the planet, right? McLaren simply couldn't find the budget to make it happen when they've already got two elite drivers on way cheaper contracts. Schumacher said the figures just didn't add up for the Woking outfit.

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But the real kicker is this trust factor. Schumacher pointed out that Verstappen's camp trusts almost nobody, and there's a persistent rumour that Mercedes doesn't share all its technical know-how with customer teams straight away. That's a dealbreaker when you're thinking about joining a works customer outfit.

There's also the bigger picture about Verstappen becoming bigger than the team itself. Schumacher reckons that would've been a real risk for McLaren from a results perspective. If Max wins with them, it's the driver. If he struggles, it's the car. Plus, Lewis Hamilton's move to Ferrari showed how tough transitioning to a new team can be.

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Verstappen's new Red Bull contract does have an escape clause if the team stops competing for titles, so a McLaren move isn't completely off the table down the line. But realistically, it's not happening before 2029 based on how long Norris and Piastri's deals run. For now, the king is staying right where he wants to be.

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