Mercedes’ great ambition is to convince Max Verstappen to become your star. Toto Wolff never hid that he was the signing he wanted to replace Lewis Hamilton. But now he seems to have changed his mind…at least for now.
He said in an interview with ‘Motorsport’ that they were “calm” with George Russell and Kimi Antonelli: “I think I’ve said it before, and we also have a similar point of view on Max’s side: you have to trust your drivers or your team. You have to give them all the support you can for them to succeed. “
“Only if things go really bad will you consider other opportunities”details.
“It’s like flirting in the open while trying to make your relationship work. Only if I want to make a change or think about it will I seek out a conversation. And it’s the same for him . I think our values coincide a bit in this regard.” explains Wolff.
And he praises his new partner: “George has a similar background in terms of karting and junior formula, and was the first Mercedes junior to join us. He is still our Mercedes driver. We are not doing a big difference between Russell and Antonelli Emotionally, we give them the same support.
The first thing Kimi will do is challenge his teammate: “All the best F1 drivers know that They have to compete with their teammates, whether they are young or old…”.
“George’s teammate was Lewis Hamiltonthe best driver of all time, for three years. He will therefore be very good against one of the youngest, who arrives with high expectations,” says the Mercedes boss.
