George Russell (GBR) of Mercedes AMG F1 W15. On March 9, 2024, during the Formula 1 World Championship, Round 2, the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix took place in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on Race Day.
Toto Wolff, the boss of the Mercedes Formula 1 team, openly expresses his desire to sign Max Verstappen. However, he acknowledges that the team needs to address the issues with their car following a disappointing performance at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
Lewis Hamilton, who has been associated with Mercedes for a long time, will be leaving the team at the end of this season to join Ferrari. This departure leaves a vacant seat alongside George Russell for the 2025 season.
The aftermath of the investigation into Red Bull Team Principal Christian Horner has led to Max Verstappen being considered as a surprising candidate. Verstappen’s father, Jos, was seen having a conversation with Wolff in Bahrain and expressed concerns that Horner’s presence could potentially cause division within the Red Bull team.
Despite Verstappen’s commitment to his current Red Bull F1 contract until 2028, he has hinted that his decision may depend on the involvement of Helmut Marko.
Wolff has made it clear that he would welcome Verstappen as Hamilton’s replacement, but his main focus is on improving the car for Mercedes’ current drivers.
“I would love to have him, but we need to address the issues with our car first,” said Wolff in response to the rumors of Verstappen joining Mercedes.
“Before we start dreaming about the future, we owe it to George and Lewis to provide them with better equipment for the next year.”
Mercedes had high hopes for its redesigned 2024 vehicle to show better performance in Jeddah, as it had been hindered by cooling issues in Bahrain. However, the team’s cars ended up occupying the fourth row of the grid, with Russell finishing sixth, 39.9s behind Verstappen, and Hamilton struggling to a disappointing ninth place.
“I would love to have Verstappen on our team, but first, we must focus on improving the car and providing our drivers with top-notch equipment before thinking about the future,” said the team’s representative.
On the other hand, Red Bull has been dominating the races under the new ground effect regulations, making it unrealistic to expect Verstappen to switch teams. “A driver will always strive to be in the fastest car possible. That gives them the best chance of winning races and championships, and that’s where Max is right now,” stated the representative.
When asked if Verstappen is being considered by Mercedes, the representative responded, “Every team on the grid would jump at the opportunity to have him in their car.”
As for the decision on Mercedes’ 2025 lineup, the team is still evaluating the driver market and the available options. “We will wait. We have several interesting choices, and we want to assess how the season unfolds before making a decision. It won’t happen in the next few weeks, but rather in a few months,” clarified the representative.
Despite the tension at Red Bull, Mercedes is not allowing itself to be distracted. The team believes it cannot rely on external factors to bridge the gap. “We need to focus on ourselves and figure out what we need to do to provide our drivers with the best possible car. It’s not our drivers who are the issue, but rather our machine that is not performing up to our expectations,” emphasized the representative.