Toto Wolff has revealed that there are ‘no talks’ underway between representatives of Mercedes and Max Verstappen, with the team focused on ‘improving the car’, much to the delight of Lewis Hamilton.
The Silver Arrows have been chasing Verstappen’s signature ever since Hamilton made it clear that he would be joining Ferrari in 2025, but in response, the Dutchman stated that unless the Brackley-based outfit improves their performance, he is not going to consider leaving Red Bull.
Since then, Mercedes and Red Bull have converged, and at the Spanish Grand Prix on Sunday, Wolff’s outfit had a car on the podium for the second weekend in succession. Despite these gains, however, Verstappen is not close to joining the team.
In the aftermath of an impressive weekend in Barcelona, Wolff was asked for an update on talks between his squad and representatives of the three-time world champion.
No, there’s no talks taking place at that stage because I think we need to look at ourselves and improve the car,” he responded, before adding: “I think we just need to continue to improve and look at ourselves.
“The most important thing is as a team with our drivers, Lewis and George, we’ve just got to get better and hopefully consolidate our ability to be on the podium, and at a certain stage be able to win races on our own. And if you have a good car, good drivers will want to come.”
Wolff’s laser-focused approach to development will delight Hamilton, who has long been cheering the Brackley-based team on despite his on-track struggles.
Hamilton made his feelings clear after his podium in the Spanish sun. “We’re slowly getting closer,” he explained. “Last year, we were very fast here, so you have to take it with a pinch of salt, but obviously the last couple of races we’ve been relatively competitive.
“So, I think we have closed the gap a little bit, but we still have a good couple of tenths to try and find. We just have to have all hands on deck and keep pushing.”
