Toto Wolff says he wants to avoid missing out on Mercedes F1 protégé Andrea Kimi Antonelli as he did with Max Verstappen.
Lewis Hamilton’s surprise decision to leave Mercedes after 12 seasons to join Ferrari from 2025 has left the Silver Arrows having to find a replacement to partner George Russell.
Last year, Wolff publicly courted Verstappen amid turmoil at Red Bull, but when it became clear he would not be able to poach the Dutchman, Mercedes opted to promote Antonelli after just one season in Formula 2.
Hamilton’s departure ultimately paved the way for Antonelli ahead of schedule according to Wolff, who also admits he was relieved not to have had to make the decision to say ‘stop’ to the seven-time world champion.
“It was a great ball thrown to us by Lewis, and it still feels weird to me knowing that he is now wearing the Ferrari suit and is going to drive the red car.”
“It’s just a little surreal. But we had this 17-year-old in the pipeline [Kimi Antonelli]. I didn’t want to miss him, like I did with Max [Verstappen] back then, when I didn’t have a car for him, so it all fell into place.”
-“And I can kind of understand Lewis’ decision, because we didn’t make it. Our car wasn’t fast enough, he definitely had a huge offer on the table, and every Formula 1 driver wants to drive a Ferrari.”
“I couldn’t make the decision from a personal point of view – we owe him so much. And I didn’t want to make the decision, as Mercedes, to let the greatest champion of all time go.”
“Maybe he felt it too, and he knew Antonelli was in the works. It was something I almost had in mind, that it would happen, but I wasn’t thinking about 2025.”
