Wolff reveals extent of summer talks with Verstappen as he gives his take on Dutchman’s title chances

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff has touched on the conversations he held with Max Verstappen and the four-time World Champion’s manager over the summer, saying they were on “a personal level”.

After Red Bull’s up-and-down start to the 2025 season, Verstappen was linked with a move to the Silver Arrows, who currently field George Russell and Kimi Antonelli – Wolff publicly admitting there are some talks “you just need to have”.

Asked about the prospect of Verstappen and Russell teaming up for Mercedes at July’s Belgian Grand Prix, Wolff said: “This is all more in the let’s say long-shot, far-fetched [ideas], because I want to stay with Kimi and George as it stands.

“Everything else is not realistic, but obviously [if] you have a Russell/Verstappen line-up, that’s Prost/Senna, I guess, no?” added Wolff, referring to the legendary – and explosive – McLaren partnership of Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna.

Just a week after those comments, at the Hungarian Grand Prix, Verstappen confirmed that he would continue with Red Bull through 2026 – and into F1’s new era of regulations – as part of his existing contract that runs until 2028.

A couple more months on, Wolff was asked for a summary of what he, Verstappen and Verstappen’s manager Raymond Vermeulen discussed, and how important performance under next year’s rule changes will be.

“We didn’t discuss big sporting matters too much in the summer,” said Wolff, speaking during his post-race media duties at the recent Azerbaijan Grand Prix. “It was more on a personal level.”

Continuing on the subject of Verstappen, Wolff also gave his take on the Dutchman’s chances of reeling in McLaren pair Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris after back-to-back victories at Baku and Monza.

“I think you always need to stay feet on the ground and humble,” said Wolff, with Verstappen now 44 points behind Norris and 69 behind championship leader Piastri.

“He’s had a good run, the car is good, and Max Verstappen, you always need to be wary of what he can achieve, especially if he’s seeing that it’s actually back on the cards.

“It’s a long shot. Things need to work in his favour, but you can see [with] a DNF for the championship leader and Max scoring 25 points, it can swing quickly.”