Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko "would be surprised" if Max Verstappen hasn't already had conversations with Mercedes about replacing Lewis Hamilton in a blockbuster move.
The F1 grid is set to look vastly different next year after it was announced Hamilton would be joining Ferrari from 2025.
The move will have a knock-on effect with Carlos Sainz now available and a seat now being free at Mercedes while more than half the grid will be out of contract at the end of the season.
Verstappen is one of a few already signed up beyond the end of the year, but Hamilton's shock move to Ferrari has raised questions whether Mercedes will try to steal the Dutchman.
Marko appears confident Verstappen will snub any approach, although he feels the reigning world champion may have already spoken to Mercedes.
Max Verstappen is being tipped to replace Lewis Hamilton
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"I would be surprised if they had not done that. But Max is a very loyal driver," Marko said.
Marko is keen to see how Hamilton's final season with Mercedes will pan out and he feels the UK-based team will have to keep the seven-time world champion in the loop until the end of the season if they begin to challenge at the front.
"Lewis is an exceptional driver," Marko added.
"If Mercedes gives him a car capable of winning or even competing for the world championship, they will have to involve him in everything until the end.
"And so Mercedes will jump over their shadow."
Toto Wolff was asked about the prospect of Mercedes snatching Verstappen away from Red Bull at the weekend.
The Mercedes team principal refused to rule out a possible move, although he suggested it was unlikely at the moment given Red Bull's dominance.
"I think the driver will always choose the fastest car," he said.
"That's what it's essentially all about. At the moment the Red Bull is the fastest car, so that will clearly be the priority."
Andrea Kimi Antonelli, who is making his F2 debut this year, has also been tipped as a possible option for Mercedes.
Speaking last month, Wolff suggested the teenager is in the mix to earn the seat at Mercedes depending on his results this year.
Toto Wolff has refused to rule out an interest in Max Verstappen
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“We got that curveball thrown at us with Lewis in the beginning of February,” he said last month.
“I want to do the opposite when choosing the driver for next year.
“It’s clear Kimi has been in our junior category since he was 11 and we have had great pleasure in watching him grow as a young man and growing through the ranks.
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Andrea Kimi Antonelli is also an option for Mercedes
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“But I also want to take a little bit of pressure off him. He’s 17. He’s won everything he needed to win in his rookie season, but I think he is going to be a Formula 1 driver,” Wolff continued.
"He’s going to be a very, very successful driver in Formula 1. But he hasn’t started his Formula 2 campaign yet.
“I want to wait out the first F2 races that are actually going to go with Formula 1.”
Antonelli finished ahead of his Prema Racing team-mate Oliver Bearman in both the spring and feature race in the F2 season-opening weekend.
