Toto Wolff hints at Mercedes driver axe with clear warning to Russell and Antonelli

Mercedes F1 boss Toto Wolff has confidently stated that he will not have another Lewis Hamilton vs Nico Rosberg situation at Mercedes, saying he would get rid of any drivers acting that way in future.

Hamilton and Rosberg were team-mates at Mercedes between 2013 and 2016, being involved in three fiercely-competed championship battles in that time.

Hamilton won the title in 2014 and 2015, before Rosberg pipped the Brit to the championship in 2016, when their tense relationship became the most fragile it had ever been.

A number of incidents occurred between the pair in 2016, including at the Spanish Grand Prix, when they collided and took each other out of the race.

Wolff recently revealed that he temporarily fired both drivers after that incident, forcing them to think about the damage done to the team.

Now, the team principal has said he will never have a driver pairing that put themselves over the team ever again, claiming he would axe any driver attempting to do that.

Wolff currently has Kimi Antonelli and George Russell taking up the two Mercedes F1 seats, two drivers who have a good relationship but also look set to be involved in a championship battle this season.

Antonelli is currently 59 points ahead of Russell, but the second half of the season will likely see more battles for race wins between the pair after the summer break, which could cause some tension as the season reaches its climax.

READ MORE: Wolff fears Mercedes and Antonelli will be hit with FIA penalty

Wolff knows what he wants from F1 drivers

When asked if he could see a repeat of the Hamilton vs Rosberg years with Mercedes' current driver lineup, Wolff told RN365: "I will not allow it. That's never going to happen to me again.

"That's never going to happen to the team again. Simple. I'm just taking a driver out if he does that."

In the past few seasons, Mercedes have been linked with the signing of four-time world champion Max Verstappen, a driver who can possess an explosive personality at times, as both Hamilton and Russell have found out in recent years.

While he is clearly one of the most talented drivers on the grid, Wolff recently stated that signing Verstappen and unsettling his current driver lineup 'wouldn't make sense'.

Time will tell as to whether Mercedes want to stick with Russell and Antonelli long-term, or whether they do find somebody else to sit alongside their teenage superstar Antonelli.

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