It’s time to stop “flirting” with Verstappen

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff says the time is right to stop “flirting” with Max Verstappen now that his squad’s Formula 1 driver line-up is sorted.

In the wake of Lewis Hamilton announcing his departure from Mercedes at the end of this season, Wolff held numerous discussions with the Verstappen camp earlier this year about a potential switch.

Wolff was hoping that the early season turmoil within Red Bull following the allegations made against team boss Christian Horner, allied to questions over the squad’s long-term competitiveness, could tempt Verstappen to make a move.

But with the talks going nowhere, and Mercedes increasingly impressed with junior driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli’s progress in testing this year, the interest in a Verstappen swoop fell away.

Ahead of this year’s Italian Grand Prix, Mercedes announced that Antonelli would step up as Hamilton’s replacement ahead of what the squad hopes is the start of a long-term relationship.

With Antonelli slotted in alongside George Russell, Mercedes has talked of a driver line-up that it expects to have in place for years – which is why Wolff sees no need to be active with Verstappen anymore.

Speaking to Motorsport.com about thoughts on his approach to Verstappen’s future, Wolff said: “We’re sitting back.

“I think I’ve expressed it before, and we have a similar view also from Max’s side: you’ve got to put faith in your drivers or in your team. You need to give it the maximum support you can to make it a success. And only if things go really wrong, you will consider other opportunities.

George Russell, Mercedes-AMG F1 Team, 1st position, Toto Wolff, Team Principal and CEO, Mercedes-AMG F1 Team, celebrate in Parc Ferme

Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images

“For me, it’s like flirting outside whilst you’re making your relationship work. It doesn’t work, I’m not flirting outside.

“Only if I want to have a change, or consider a change, I would seek a conversation. And it is the same on his side. We’re pretty aligned in our values on that I think.”

While Mercedes sees Antonelli as someone for the very long term, the future of Russell has been the subject of interest – with Red Bull suggesting he could be a candidate for the Milton Keynes squad when his current contracts expires at the end of 2025.

But Wolff sees Russell as an integral part of Mercedes for years to come, and thinks he will revel in the fresh challenge of going up against the young Antonelli.

“George has a similar trajectory in terms of karting and junior formula, and George was the first Mercedes junior that joined us,” added Wolff. “He’s still our Mercedes driver.

“We don’t make a big difference [between him and Antonelli]. Emotionally, we give them the same support. Nothing changes.

“Every top driver in F1 knows that he needs to compete against their team-mate, whether he’s young or old. George’s team-mate has been Lewis Hamilton, the greatest driver of all time, for three years.

“So he will be just fine competing against one of the youngest, who comes in with great expectations.”