Max Verstappen gives Franco Colapinto verdict as Red Bull tipped to raid Williams

has offered his verdict on teaming up with Franco Colapinto in the future, suggesting that the young Argentinian is 'very attractive' to a lot of F1 outfits after doing a 'great job' during his first five Grand Prix weekends.

Colapinto has made a huge impact on the paddock since replacing Logan Sargeant after the Dutch Grand Prix, scoring points in two of his first five races. However, with Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon both signed long-term from 2026 onwards, he has no logical future with Williams.

One potential destination for the 21-year-old could be the Red Bull family with Sergio Perez at risk of losing his seat with the team for the 2025 season. With Liam Lawson and Yuki Tsunoda also in contention for two of three seats, it is unclear where Colapinto would fit in, but he has even been mentioned as a possible team-mate for Verstappen next year.

Asked about the possibility of teaming up with Colapinto in 2025, Verstappen said: "I don't know. It's a bit difficult for me to answer. I'm busy with other things to improve. He's doing a great job at the moment - that's great to see. I understand that it's very attractive to a lot of teams to have, so it's up to the team."

Red Bull chief Christian Horner added fuel to the fire when he was spotted leaving the Williams motorhome in the Brazilian Grand Prix paddock earlier in the weekend. James Vowles brushed off the meeting when asked about it by the media.

"We've recently signed a new coffee sponsor, which is Reviver from Gulf, and he really wanted to try it," the Williams team principal explained. "That was a good part of the conversation. He enjoyed it."

Colapinto has insisted that he does not expect to be on the grid in 2025, but with VCARB, Sauber and now even Red Bull as potential destinations for him, the 21-year-old's chances are good if he continues to take the fight to team-mate Albon.

He even has the backing of seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton, who said on Thursday: "I think he's done an incredible job. To be called upon at the last minute and be thrown into the deep end in this sport. The majority of us, if we're lucky enough, get a bit of a run-up.

"For example, young Kimi [Antonelli] has had a lot of test days before his first race. I think he'll have over 20 test days or something in the car which is unprecedented. For this guy here, he didn't have that and just jumped straight in and did a fantastic job in the races.

"It's always great to see young people and talented individuals get the opportunity to come through and shine and I think he did that in the first race, we had a great little battle and it was super safe, it was hard but fair and I think he's earned his right to be here."