Nico Rosberg insists Toto Wolff “still wants” Max Verstappen at Mercedes despite Kimi Antonelli move

Nico Rosberg is confident that Toto Wolff will not give up on trying to sign Max Verstappen even after Kimi Antonelli's 2025 move.

Nico Rosberg insists Toto Wolff “still wants” Max Verstappen at Mercedes despite Kimi Antonelli move

Toto Wolff, Max Verstappen, Nico Rosberg, and Kimi Antonelli (images via IMAGO0

Mercedes was left in a tough spot after Lewis Hamilton announced his switch to Scuderia Ferrari for 2025. Team boss Toto Wolff even expressed interest in luring Max Verstappen from Red Bull. However, the Austrian billionaire has now signed 18-year-old Kimi Antonelli after talks with Verstappen did not yield results.

2016 F1 world champion Nico Rosberg claimed that Toto Wolff still wants to have Max Verstappen race for Mercedes. Rosberg insisted that despite signing Kimi Antonelli to race for the Silver Arrows next season, Wolff would still try to poach Verstappen for the 2026 season.

Toto still wants max and he will try again for 2026.
Nico Rosberg stated
YouTube video

The German driver claimed that Toto Wolff simply did not know the word ‘give up.’ As such, the Mercedes boss could potentially try his best again in 2025 to sign Verstappen. Previously, Wolff had admitted that he wants the Dutch driver to race for Mercedes one day.

FS Video
Give up does not appear in Toto’s vocabulary.
Nico Rosberg noted
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Nico Rosberg claims Toto Wolff made ‘really brave’ call with Kimi Antonelli

Kimi Antonelli could be seen as a wildcard move by Wolff considering his lack of experience. However, the 18-year-old has shown incredible talent in junior categories. As such, Nico Rosberg reckoned that Toto Wolff had made the right call by promoting Antonelli. However, Rosberg pointed out that it was indeed a very brave move for the Silver Arrows.

Toto Wolff and Kimi Antonelli
Toto Wolff and Kimi Antonelli ( images via IMAGO)
Yes, it's the right move, but of course, it's also very, very brave.
Nico Rosberg told Sky Germany

Certainly, Toto Wolff has high expectations for Kimi Antonelli in F1. However, it will be interesting to see what would happen if Max Verstappen does become open to a Mercedes switch in the future. George Russell and Antonelli could find themselves battling one another just to stay at the Brackley-based squad.

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