Red Bull's Christian Horner says Max Verstappen intends to stay despite Mercedes links

SILVERSTONE, England (AP) — Red Bull team principal Christian Horner has said Max Verstappen intends to stay with the team for next year despite speculation about a move to Mercedes which would shake up Formula 1.

Verstappen has repeatedly declined to say he's committed to Red Bull for 2026 following a suggestion last week from Mercedes' George Russell that his team spoke with Verstappen. Russell doesn’t have a contract for 2026.

The four-time world champion has a contract through 2028 at Red Bull but there have been indications that a performance-related clause could allow him to exit earlier. The exact details are not public.

“The contracts between the drivers and the teams are always going to remain confidential. With any driver’s contract there is an element of a performance mechanism, and of course that exists within Max’s contract,” Horner said on Friday at the British Grand Prix.

“His intention is that he will be there and driving for us in 2026. It’s inevitable that he’s of huge interest to any other other team in the pit lane.”

Horner suggested Russell “probably triggered all this speculation” to strengthen his hand in talks with Mercedes. “I think the most important thing is the clarity that exists between Max and the team and that’s very clear,” Horner added.

Horner also said of Verstappen: “He’s made it quite clear that he would like to finish his career in a Red Bull car from start to finish. I think that’s quite special and unique for him.”

Russell said on Thursday he believed there was an “exceptionally low” chance he'd have to leave Mercedes for 2026.

Horner added that Yuki Tsunoda will get the rest of 2025 to show he deserves to keep a seat at Red Bull, but signaled he'd consider a range of options inside and outside the wider Red Bull organization, including Liam Lawson and his rookie Racing Bulls teammate Isack Hadjar.

Tsunoda was promoted to Verstappen's teammate in March after Lawson struggled in the first two races.

“Yuki has got until the end of the season to demonstrate that he's the guy to remain in the car,” Horner said. “We have Isack also doing a good job and Liam finding his form as well. So within the Red Bull pool we have talent. Of course, you're also open to what is outside of that. We want to field the best lineup that we can for next year. We’ve gone outside of that pool in recent years. If we feel the necessity to do so, we wouldn’t be afraid to do so again."

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Red Bull driver Max Verstappen of the Netherlands in action during the second practice of the British Formula One Grand Prix in Silverstone, England, Friday, July 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner attends a news conference at the Silverstone racetrack, ahead of the British Formula One Grand Prix, in Silverstone, England, Friday, July 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner attends a news conference at the Silverstone racetrack, ahead of the British Formula One Grand Prix, in Silverstone, England, Friday, July 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

Red Bull driver Max Verstappen of the Netherlands makes a pit stop during the first practice of the British Formula One Grand Prix in Silverstone, England, Friday, July 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — Richard “Dick” Codey, a former acting governor of New Jersey and the longest serving legislator in the state's history, died Sunday. He was 79.

Codey’s wife, Mary Jo Codey, confirmed her husband’s death to The Associated Press.

“Gov. Richard J. Codey passed away peacefully this morning at home, surrounded by family, after a brief illness,” Codey's family wrote in a Facebook post on Codey's official page.

"Our family has lost a beloved husband, father and grandfather -- and New Jersey lost a remarkable public servant who touched the lives of all who knew him," the family said.

Known for his feisty, regular-guy persona, Codey was a staunch advocate of mental health awareness and care issues. The Democrat also championed legislation to ban smoking from indoor areas and sought more money for stem cell research.

Codey, the son of a northern New Jersey funeral home owner, entered the state Assembly in 1974 and served there until he was elected to the state Senate in 1982. He served as Senate president from 2002 to 2010.

Codey first served as acting governor for a brief time in 2002, after Christine Todd Whitman’s resignation to join President George W. Bush’s administration. He held the post again for 14 months after Gov. Jim McGreevey resigned in 2004.

At that time, New Jersey law mandated that the Senate president assume the governor’s role if a vacancy occurred, and that person would serve until the next election.

Codey routinely drew strong praise from residents in polls, and he gave serious consideration to seeking the Democratic nomination for governor in 2005. But he ultimately chose not to run when party leaders opted to back wealthy Wall Street executive Jon Corzine, who went on to win the office.

Codey would again become acting governor after Corzine was incapacitated in April 2007 due to serious injuries he suffered in a car accident. He held the post for nearly a month before Corzine resumed his duties.

After leaving the governor’s office, Codey returned to the Senate and also published a memoir that detailed his decades of public service, along with stories about his personal and family life.

“He lived his life with humility, compassion and a deep sense of responsibility to others,” his family wrote. “He made friends as easily with Presidents as he did with strangers in all-night diners.”

Codey and his wife often spoke candidly about her past struggles with postpartum depression, and that led to controversy in early 2005, when a talk radio host jokingly criticized Mary Jo and her mental health on the air.

Codey, who was at the radio station for something else, confronted the host and said he told him that he wished he could “take him outside.” But the host claimed Codey actually threatened to “take him out,” which Codey denied.

His wife told The Associated Press that Codey was willing to support her speaking out about postpartum depression, even if it cost him elected office.

“He was a really, really good guy,” Mary Jo Codey said. “He said, ‘If you want to do it, I don’t care if I get elected again.’”

Jack Brook contributed reporting from New Orleans.

FILE - New Jersey State Sen. and former Democratic Gov. Richard Codey is seen before New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy delivers his State of the State address to a joint session of the Legislature at the statehouse, in Trenton, N.J., Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)