Wolff reveals WHY Mercedes missed out on signing Verstappen
Wolff reveals WHY Mercedes missed out on signing Verstappen
Toto Wolff has revealed how Max Verstappen could have joined Mercedes as a teenager before he eventually made the call to join Toro Rosso.
Verstappen entered the world of F1 as a 17-year-old, making his Grand Prix debut in Melbourne back in 2015 driving for Toro Rosso.
The rest is history as Verstappen and Red Bull carved out an unbreakable relationship with the now-25-year-old hunting down his third consecutive world title.
The story could, however, have ended very differently with Toto Wolff revealing how Mercedes looked at bringing Verstappen into F1 to no avail.
No room at the inn
"Yes," Wolff responded when asked by Motorsport Italy whether he and Mercedes had lost out on Verstappen ahead of the 2015 season, "but I didn't have a Formula 1 steering wheel to offer him.
"We had Lewis and Nico and both had long-term contracts, Max was clearly an interesting youngster but at that moment we could have offered him a place in GP2 and then maybe a contract."
Wolff then went on to explain how Red Bull tempted Verstappen into entering their setup for 2015.
"But Helmut was able to offer him a seat in Formula 1 and in the end, I also advised him to go that route.
"And that meant seeing him leave the Mercedes orbit”.
READ MORE: Toto Wolff delivers EMPHATIC answer to 'quit' calls
Related
Change your timezone:
Latest News
F1 Sprint Qualifying Results: Chinese Grand Prix 2024 times as Mercedes struggle again
- 16 minutes ago
F1 Results Today: Chinese Grand Prix practice times as SURPRISE driver tops charts
- 3 hours ago
Another bizarre fire STOPS action at Chinese Grand Prix
- 10 minutes ago
EXCLUSIVE: Hamilton and Ferrari chief had meals together years before 2025 signing
- 22 minutes ago
F1 Chinese Grand Prix weather forecast - latest today from Shanghai
- 26 minutes ago
Young F1 star set to make McLaren debut in injury replacement
- 52 minutes ago
Related news
Hamilton to open Wolff talks at Mercedes amid Ferrari F1 move uncertainty
Brundle hits back at Wolff comments over 2024 title
Red Bull boss Horner SHUTS DOWN F1 rival Wolff's title talk
Verstappen admits new Mercedes relationship with F1 future update
F1 Standings
Drivers
- Oliver Bearman
- Charles Leclerc
- Carlos Sainz
- Lando Norris
- Oscar Piastri
- Pierre Gasly
- Esteban Ocon
- Sergio Pérez
- Max Verstappen
- Alexander Albon
- Logan Sargeant
- Lewis Hamilton
- George Russell
- Nico Hülkenberg
- Kevin Magnussen
- Fernando Alonso
- Lance Stroll
- Valtteri Bottas
- Zhou Guanyu
- Daniel Ricciardo
- Yuki Tsunoda
Races
- Gulf Air Grand Prix of Bahrain 2024
- Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Australia 2024
- MSC Cruises Grand Prix of Japan 2024
- Grand Prix of China 2024
- Miami Grand Prix 2024
- Gran Premio dell'Emilia Romagna 2024
- Grand Prix of Monaco 2024
- Grand Prix du Canada 2024
- Gran Premio de España 2024
- Grand Prix of Austria 2024
- Grand Prix of Great Britain 2024
- Grand Prix of Hungary 2024
- Grand Prix of Belgium 2024
- Heineken Dutch Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Italy 2024
- Grand Prix of Azerbaijan 2024
- Grand Prix of Singapore 2024
- Grand Prix of the United States 2024
- Gran Premio de la Ciudad de Mexico 2024
- Grande Prêmio de São Paulo 2024
- Heineken Silver Las Vegas Grand Prix 2024
- Qatar Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi 2024
About GPFans
GPFans is a multi-platform, multi-language brand dedicated to Formula One coverage. We bring you all the ins and outs of the sport, 24/7, everything from up-to-the-minute news and features to the latest viral stories and clips.We believe that a new generation of exciting, outspoken drivers will make F1 more popular than ever before, and we want to give our users access to as much of their heroes as possible, on and off the track. From Lewis Hamilton to Max Verstappen, Daniel Ricciardo to Sebastian Vettel, we provide in-depth analysis of every every Grand Prix in the season, from Australia to Abu Dhabi.
With Formula One under the new ownership of Liberty Media, how the sport is being covered is evolving, and GPFans will look to be at the heart of this progression into new media, as one of the fastest-growing sites covering the king of motorsports.
Follow us on your favorite social media channel
Corporate & Media
Innovatieweg 20C7007 CD, Doetinchem, Netherlands
+31645516860