Toto Wolff has made a shocking statement. For the first time, the Mercedes team principal has spoken openly about who he wants to hire to replace Lewis Hamilton, who is leaving at the end of the year.
Wolff named four names, none of which is a real surprise, but rather the openness with which he focuses on one of them:
We have some very interesting options! There is Kimi Antonelli, Carlos Sainz, Fernando Alonso and of course Max Verstappen, who we want more than anyone else. It is a collaboration that has to happen sooner or later! It is just a matter of time... But you can't deny that he is our number one candidate together with George Russell! But I don't want to exclude the others. Our main goal is to be a top team and to be able to provide a really competitive car that can attract these drivers. It is more about creating an effective team that is the main route back to success, but of course as a team manager you always want the best driver pairing in the field", said Wolff, who has effectively settled the debate about "who is better, Lewis Hamilton or Max Verstappen" without wanting to...
