Toto Wolff Admits: Not Signing Max Verstappen in 2014 Caused Uncertainty Over Lewis Hamilton’s Current Contract

Moments when generational talents like Max Verstappen arrive on the Formula 1 scene come few and far between. And the teams have to be quick on their feet to get a hold of such talent. However, Toto Wolff missed the trick and let Red Bull sign Verstappen when he was the talk of the town. But now, with another young talent like the Dutchman coming along nicely, Wolff doesn’t want to repeat his mistake. I’m talking about Andrea Kimi Antonelli, the 17-year-old Mercedes junior driver who has already been touted as the next Max Verstappen. And it was due to Antonelli that Wolff wasn’t willing to give a long-term contract extension to Lewis Hamilton.

Antonelli has an impressive track record in karting as well as the junior Formula categories, having clinched victories in Italian F4 in 2022 and the Formula Regional European Championship last year with Prema. Toto Wolff likened the situation to Mercedes’ missed opportunity with Max Verstappen in 2014. Wolff emphasized the importance of preserving options for emerging talents, highlighting Antonelli’s remarkable achievements in lower formulae and his potential to ascend to Formula 1 in the coming years.

Speaking about Verstappen, Wolff said as per Autosport, “[Nico] Rosberg and Hamilton were tied to us long-term, and Red Bull naturally seized the opportunity. They gave him a contract with Toro Rosso, with the possibility of driving for Red Bull the following year.” He added, “And precisely because we have a junior on the horizon who is really driving at a very high level, I simply wanted to keep this option open.”

READ MORE: F1 News: Lewis Hamilton’s ‘Special Personality’ Will Be No Good at Ferrari as Ex-F1 Driver Highlights Serious Challenge

Will Mercedes end up putting extra pressure on young Kimi in their quest to get him into F1 as soon as possible?

Mercedes are fast-tracking Kimi Antonelli’s career to prepare him for F1

Young drivers usually all take a very similar path while making their way to the pinnacle of motorsport. Karting is followed by Formula 4 which is usually followed by Formula 3 (skipping Formula Regional) which is then followed by Formula 2 and eventually Formula 1. However, Mercedes made a couple of unconventional decisions with Andrea Kimi Antonelli. First, they had him race in Formula Regional after F4, which is kind of rare for exceptional talents but not unheard of. However, what is extremely rare is for young drivers to skip Formula 3 altogether. And Mercedes promoted young Kimi straight to F2.

“He’s a wonderkid,“ said Toto Wolff. “He won everything there was to win in karting and then moved into F4. He won all the championships in his rookie year, then moved up a level and won everything there too. Now we’ve decided to skip F3, partly because there’s not much time to test there. Instead, he’ll go straight into F2, which is a huge leap for him.“

And to make things even more difficult for its junior driver, Mercedes has recently confirmed that the 17-year-old will be driving the W13 in 2024 as part of his preparation for Formula 1 in an intense program that will be run parallel to his F2 campaign with Prema Racing.

Is Mercedes planning to shock everyone by promoting Kimi straight into Formula 1 in 2025? After all, Wolff did talk about making a bold decision with their driver choice for next year. What are your thoughts on the matter?