Toto Wolff promised Lewis Hamilton that he would not approach Max Verstappen about the vacant Mercedes seat following the seven-time champion’s decision to leave.
Hamilton decided before the 2024 season even began that it would be his last with the Silver Arrows. He told team principal Wolff that he had signed with rivals Ferrari just a few days before the news was made public.
It left the Austrian with the unenviable task of finding a replacement for the most successful driver in Formula 1 history. And new footage from the Netflix Formula 1: Drive to Survive programme appears to suggest Hamilton did not want his seat to be filled by 2021 title rival Verstappen.
In season seven of the show, which is released on Friday, the Mercedes chief is seen in conversation with his wife and F1 Academy chief executive Susie Wolff about Hamilton’s exit and who the team should choose to race alongside George Russell in 2025 and beyond.
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Eventually, Mercedes decided to look to the future and promoted teenager Andrea Kimi Antonelli, who they believe can be a future star of the sport. But the conversation reveals how Wolff considered more experienced options first, including two-time champion Fernando Alonso and fellow Spaniard Carlos Sainz, whose seat at Ferrari had been taken by Hamilton.
Toto says: “So Carlos is somebody to look at, he’s had some really good performances, Fernando, I mean, race pace, racecraft is still very good.” In response, Susie makes the point: “You’re not going to start a new era with a long contract with Fernando, it’s an interim.”
“What is he, 45?” Toto asks, to which his wife replies: “No, I don’t think he is that old.” She then asks: “You don’t think Max is an option?” And Toto says: I think he is, but if you win all the races in a season…” And Susie finishes the thought: “There is not much reason to leave.”
It is then that the Mercedes boss suggests that Hamilton had requested that his place not be filled by Verstappen, with whom he had a bitter title rivalry in that infamous 2021 season. He adds: “I haven’t talked to him, because I promised Lewis I wouldn’t talk to him – but I will have the conversation now.”
Wolff did attempt to publicly woo Verstappen at the height of the civil war that engulfed Red Bull in the early months of the 2024 season. But eventually calm was restored behind the scenes at the Dutchman’s team and that, along with seven victories from the first 10 races, helped him decide against considering a move.
The Austrian has made it clear, though, that he will remain in contact with Verstappen’s father Jos and manager Raymond Vermeulen going forward. However, should the four-time champion become available, Mercedes face stiff competition from Aston Martin and former F1 racer Johnny Herbert believes it would “make total sense” for the Dutchman to join the latter.
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