Russell, Antonelli a priority says Wolff

Mercedes boss, Toto Wolff, says George Russell and Kimi Antonelli are the priorities regardless of his discussions with Team Max Verstappen. According to a report at Autosport, Toto has spoken with Verstappen’s team saying:

“Discussions have been taking place over the last weeks and months, so they are all up to date,” Wolff said.

“The direction of travel is definitely that we want to continue with George and Kimi. That is the absolute priority. But you can’t look past someone like Max and the plans he has for the future. We did that, but I don’t think there will be any big surprises.”

One might assume that the Horner exit has, perhaps, placated the Verstappen’s and perhaps they are keen to see what Red Bull V2.0 might bring with their new power unit and partnership with Ford before throwing in the towel. It’s a gamble but perhaps one that they were willing to take if the team jettisoned Horner.

That’s just supposition but you never know and it would seem possible given Wolff’s immediate about face on Russell as a priority. He hasn’t been a priority for the past several months or else he’d be signed already.

The other issue is locking down Antonelli as well and you have to think others are sniffing around the chicken coop wondering if they might have a shot of luring him away like McLaren and Piastri. I’d imagine Wolff has Antonelli relatively locked down contractually speaking of course.

So George, the driver that Mercedes stalled in favor of Valtteri Bottas and now stalled in favor of Max Verstappen discussions. I’ve said it for the past three seasons, George would do well to go to Aston Martin or a team that can show him some love because even if they do sign him for a 2-year deal, there is a real possibility he is a stand-in for a possible Verstappen hire in 2027 or 28. To be fair, that’s a bit of a dark cloud to live under and while many drivers have most likely lived in this situation before in F1, being so public about it, as Mercedes have been, is a tough pill to swallow.