Toto Wolff’s desperate pursuit to sign Max Verstappen for Mercedes has provisionally ended today. After Lewis Hamilton suddenly created a vacancy for the Silver Arrows by making his Ferrari announcement, Wolff’s focus shifted to signing 17-year-old prodigy Andrea Kimi Antonelli. But as Red Bull’s internal ‘power struggle’ intensified, the Austrian realized he could exploit it and go after the reigning world champion. However, it was all contingent on an exit clause in Verstappen’s contract, which otherwise runs till 2028.

After the Christian Horner scandal went public, reports of a rift between him and team advisor Helmut Marko emerged. Max Verstappen and his father Jos were said to be on Marko’s side. Amid the rising tension, an exit clause in the 3-time champion’s contract emerged as well. F1-Insider reported that the Dutchman’s contract stated he could leave the team if team advisor Helmut Marko called it quits.

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff doubled down on pursuing Verstappen, calling him the “strongest driver”. He also used Lewis Hamilton’s stunning British GP victory to slyly get the Dutchman’s attention, saying “Max sees how Mercedes is doing” after staring at the back of the W15 for twenty laps. But all this has gone down the drain, with Helmut Marko extending his Red Bull contract until 2026. As per de Telegraaf, the 81-year-old’s contract has also been amended with a side letter. This means that Verstappen’s exit clause cannot be activated on the grounds of Marko leaving. Thus, putting an end to Mercedes’ pursuit for the time being.

This now leaves Wolff with Antonelli and Carlos Sainz. Despite the Italian rookie’s maiden win at the British GP F2 Sprint race, the Mercedes boss is now hesitant to prematurely promote him. This sets Sainz up to drive for a potential championship contender and Wolff’s ‘flirting’ with Verstappen will end. Though it was irritating for many while it lasted, Marko understood why it was going on.

Helmut Marko defends Toto Wolff’s “fairly normal” pursuit of Max Verstappen

Toto Wolff’s public attempts at attracting Max Verstappen‘s attention seemed quite funny, but not to all. Red Bull CEO Oliver Mintzlaff called the Mercedes boss’ approach “not appropriate”. He told Bild, “I understand the pressure Toto Wolff, and perhaps other teams, are under after years of being behind. But I think Wolff should focus on his own problems.”

At one point, Christian Horner said Wolff could have Max’s father Jos at Mercedes if he wanted a Verstappen so badly. But Helmut Marko, with decades of experience behind him, understands Wolff’s actions. “This is fairly normal,” Marko said about Wolff flirting with Verstappen. “Max is a guarantee of success. He makes the difference par excellence. Also, he would have won races this season in a Ferrari, Mercedes, or McLaren. If we didn’t have him under contract yet, we would try to get him too,” he concluded.

On many occasions, including as recent as the Austrian GP, Verstappen affirmed his loyalty to Red Bull. Moreover, this development in Marko’s contract seals the deal unless the Milton Keynes outfit’s performance severely drops and a different performance-related exit clause allows the Dutchman to leave. This could be a possibility after 2026’s regulations reset, with technical genius Adrian Newey having quit the team.