Former Mercedes star Nico Rosberg looks to have been proven right after insisting that George Russell's seat with the Silver Arrows was not safe in light of Toto Wolff's pursuit of Max Verstappen. Rumours have intensified that Mercedes' chief Wolff is determined to bring Red Bull'sfour-time world champion to his team, and at Russell's expense. Wolff's courting of Verstappen has been public knowledge for some time, while Russell's contract has not been extended beyond this year.

Such is the feverish speculation around Russell being replaced, Sky Sports' Martin Brundle has even claimed that the 27-year-old is calling up teams, seeking a new home for his talents, as concerns grow over his future in F1. Rosberg told Russell last season that his job was not safe, insisting that Wolff would never give up on his pursuit of Verstappen. The ex-Mercedes star has been proven correct, which will pile the pressure on Russell to outperform team-mate Kimi Antonelli this season, with the British Grand Prix fast approaching.

"George Russell is not safe at all because Toto still wants Max and he will try again for 2026," Rosberg said on Sky Sports in September 2024."'Give up' does not appear in Toto's vocabulary.

"So if Max does become available and I do think it's a possibility, then it is a shootout between George and Kimi next year. And it's a lot of pressure on George because he has everything to lose. He should be the one ahead because Kimi is 18 and completely new. It's not an easy situation for George."

Sky Italy are now reporting that Verstappen is open to a move to Mercedes from Red Bull and that Wolff has even made him an offer. However, they also claimed that Red Bull has insisted that Verstappen has not signalled any desire to leave their team as of yet.

Brundle, however, believes Russell is now looking for a contingency plan as talk heats up. "I think George Russell is nervous and ringing around a little bit," he told Sky Sports F1.

"There's no smoke without fire. 2026 is massive, biggest change ever in F1 for the chassis and power unit and you guess Mercedes will be there or thereabouts. Would you put Red Bull (there) and can Max actually get out of his contract? Something's up."

Wolff also once again revealed his ambitions to land the Dutch star to Sky Sports in late June but claimed it did not impact Russell's new deal with the team. "First of all, there is no delay in George's contract situation because it's pretty clear since a long time what our timings were," Wolff said. "We've known each other for such a long time, so there is no such thing as a delay.

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"But also as a team principal responsible for the best car brand in the world, it is clear you're exploring what a four-time world champion [Verstappen] is going to do in the future, and that could be a long time in the future. But that has no effect on us putting a signature on George's contract."

Wolff added that Russell was aware of Mercedes' position on Verstappen. Mercedes' German chief has been the source of inconsistent messaging when it comes to chasing Verstappen. Summer 2024 saw Wolff publicly declare his interest in Verstappen over for the time being - yet his short-term commitment to Antonelli and Russell did little to banish the Verstappen rumours and instead just shifted them a year down the line.

Where is Red Bull in all this? They have been open about the fact that Verstappen has a performance clause in his contract that reportedly allows him to leave if he moves lower than third in the World Drivers' Championship standings at a specific point in the F1 2025 season.

Vertsappen is currently third in the standings, just nine points above Russell in fourth. However, it is understood that the clause changes to the top four after the Hungarian Grand Prix, just ahead of the summer break.

Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko has also confessed that Verstappen does have a release clause "based on performance". Speaking after the Austrian Grand Prix, where Verstappen was taken out of the race after a collision with Antonelli, Marko added that "there is no concern whatsoever about an exit" when it comes to Red Bull's prized possession. While team chief Christian Horner has called the ongoing speculation as "a lot of noise."