Wolff highlights good relationship with Jos Verstappen despite 2021 tussle
F1 News
- Nicole Mulder
For now, Toto Wolff and Max Verstappen are not going to team up at Mercedes in the 2025 Formula 1 season. Yet despite everything that went on between the two camps in 2021, they have a good relationship. Wolff says he gets along very well with both Max and his father, Jos Verstappen.
Wolff emphasises good relationship with Verstappen
"We get on very well, not always in the visibility of the public eye. I've known Jos [Verstappen] for a long time. He's my age. We have similar views on racing. I wouldn't want the year 2021 to put any shadow on any personal relationship that we have. It was bad enough that year, but the relationships are intact," the Mercedes team boss said on the High Performance podcast.
Wolff does not rule out future collaboration with Verstappen
After Lewis Hamilton's announced departure to Ferrari, Wolff already set his sights on Verstappen. The Dutchman will remain loyal to Red Bull Racing next year and thus will not leave for Mercedes. Wolff is far from ruling out Verstappen still coming to his team in the future, but for now, he is focusing on the confirmed 2025 driver duo: George Russell and Andrea Kimi Antonelli.
"I think it feels natural now to go to the next generation. Max is a great driver and an interesting personality. God knows what happens in the future. But having Kimi and George in the car, homegrown, real Mercedes juniors, delivered every step of their career that we supported. I'm very much looking forward to that situation," Wolff concluded.
This article has been created in collaboration with Matt Gretton