Wolff secures Russell’s future at Mercedes after ruling out Verstappen

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff revealed that he explored the possibility of signing Max Verstappen, but is now satisfied with securing George Russell’s future at the team. Verstappen confirmed his stay at Red Bull before the Hungarian Grand Prix, ending speculation about a possible move to Mercedes for the 2026 season. Wolff did not hide his interest in hiring the four-time world champion, which raised doubts about the continuity of Russell, whose contract ends at the end of this season.

I’ve always said that I’m happy with my team, with Russell and Kimi Antonelli, but suddenly Max’s future became uncertain, so we also talked to him. But I’ve always been very clear with George: 90% of the time he would stay with us, but I needed to talk to Verstappen as well. Now the situation is clear and everything can go back to normal.

Toto Wolff

Verstappen had a clause in his contract with Red Bull that can no longer be activated. His confirmation that he would stay with the team came 23 days after Christian Horner found out he had been removed as director and CEO of Red Bull. Russell achieved his sixth podium of the season at Hungaroring and has stood out in an inconsistent Mercedes car, taking the lead of the team alongside the young Italian rookie Kimi Antonelli, following Lewis Hamilton’s departure to Ferrari. Hamilton, who won six of his seven world championships with Wolff at Mercedes, had another difficult weekend with the Scuderia and qualified himself as “useless” after qualifying. The 40-year-old driver said Ferrari should change drivers, but Wolff is convinced he will recover from his difficulties in his first season with the Italian team. It’s a characteristic of the greats: if they know they haven’t lived up to expectations, they don’t blame the team, but look within themselves. Once this moment has passed, they will return with the same motivation as always. Formula 1 will have a new set of regulations for next season, with major changes to the power units and aerodynamic rules that will end the ground effect era, in which Mercedes has struggled to match Red Bull and, this season, McLaren. Wolff is optimistic that his team will be stronger next season and admitted that he would love to have the opportunity to compete in a title battle with Hamilton and Ferrari. Wolff added: “Seeing Ferrari against Mercedes would be fantastic. I have no doubt that this duel will happen, next year or in the future. We will experience it and it will be fantastic.”