Toto Wolff makes full U-turn on wanting to sign Max Verstappen in 2025
Mercedes boss Toto Wolff refuted claims of trying to sign Max Verstappen for 2025 after Lewis Hamilton's Ferrari switch.
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Toto Wolff and Max Verstappen (images via IMAGO)
Mercedes was left in limbo at the start of 2024 when Lewis Hamilton announced his Ferrari deal for the following year. Rumors emerged that the Silver Arrows were keen on poaching Max Verstappen from Red Bull. Now, team boss Toto Wolff has asserted that such a move was never on the cards.
In the past twelve months, Wolff had mentioned his interest in bringing Verstappen on a few occasions. Even Mercedes CEO Ola Källeniu added fuel to fire last year. Though, the Silver Arrows ultimately decided to promote 18-year-old Kimi Antonelli this year.
Toto Wolff insisted that he never had a plan to sign Max Verstappen. The Austrian billionaire highlighted that at one point, Verstappen made it clear that he was not looking to leave Red Bull for 2025. As the Dutch driver was satisfied with his stay at Milton Keynes.
There was never a plan. At some point, he [Verstappen] said that he wanted to stay where he was for the time being because it felt right for him.
Toto Wolff told Auto Motor und Sport
Kimi Antonelli ‘felt right’ for Mercedes after Max Verstappen failure
Wolff insisted that after hearing about Verstappen’s decision to not leave Red Bull, he focused on Mercedes’ driver academy. Kimi Antonelli became the right option in the eyes of the Mercedes boss. Now, the 53-year-old has emphasized that it remains to be seen how Antonelli’s rookie season pans out in Formula 1.
I said that we would go with Kimi because it also felt right for us. And now we’ll see where it takes us.
Toto Wolff added
It seems, Toto Wolff understood that Max Verstappen was not keen on leaving Red Bull at least in 2025. As such, the Austrian billionaire did not put too much effort in trying to poach the Dutchman. However, Wolff and Mercedes will likely keep the door open for the reigning world champion in the near future.
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Armaan Agarwal
(2315 Articles Published)