Wolff opens up about recent talks with Verstappen: 'Agreed in the summer'
F1 News
- Nicole Mulder
Toto Wolff held further talks with Max Verstappen's management team during the summer break, he revealed. The Mercedes team boss says that at that time, the parties reached an agreement not to enter into a partnership for now. A possible partnership has not been ruled out for the future, however.
Wolff reveals talks with Verstappen
Throughout the year Wolff continued to believe in the chances of contracting Verstappen for next year. As long as the chance was "not zero", the Mercedes boss continued to do his best to bring in the triple world champion. He said in conversation with Autosport.com and others.
The 52-year-old Austrian realises that the road to a possible partnership is not an easy one. Not only because of the car's performance but also because of "interpersonal issues". Wolff stresses that despite everything, he has always got along well with Jos Verstappen. "Maybe because we're a bit similar. And that's why I thought the door was never completely closed," he acknowledged.
Verdict reached: "Shouldn't be waiting for something to happen"
Wolff admits the chance was small, but even with a one-in-10 chance, he refused to give up. During a conversation in the summer break, the parties came to the conclusion that a collaboration was not on the cards for next year. "We together came to the conclusion over the summer that we shouldn't be waiting for something to happen before committing for 2025," Wolff explained.
That conclusion means that everyone at Red Bull and Mercedes will simply continue as normal and focus on their current team. Wolff also hopes the line-up after 2025 (presumably George Russell and Andrea Kimi Antonelli) will remain the same, but is far from willing to rule out a place in the team for Verstappen in 2026 or beyond.
This article was written in collaboration with Toby Nixon