Toto Wolff details updated Mercedes plan to lure Max Verstappen

Toto Wolff has conceded Mercedes face an uphill battle in his bid to steal Max Verstappen away from F1 rivals Red Bull.

Lewis Hamilton’s shock decision to quit Mercedes and join Ferrari next season has left a vacant seat at Mercedes alongside George Russell, with several drivers including Carlos Sainz - who Hamilton will replace - linked with the drive.

Mercedes protege Andrea Kimi Antonelli is believed to be the team’s first-choice to replace the seven-time world champion but Wolff is keen not to place additional pressure on the 17-year-old Italian, who is competing in his rookie Formula 2 campaign.

Wolff has openly admitted he would “love” to take advantage of the turmoil that has surrounded Red Bull since the start of the season in the wake of the controversy around team principal Christian Horner by poaching Verstappen from the reigning world champions.

But Wolff knows that will be a hard sell to the triple world champion given Mercedes’ current lack of competitiveness.

“Max is not going to get in a car that is not competitive and at the moment we are not competitive enough to lure a world champion,” Wolff told the PA News agency at the Monaco Grand Prix.

However, Wolff pointed to McLaren’s resurgence as an example of how quickly teams’ fortunes can change during the season.

“But we have to see how the next months go,” Wolff added. 

“Look at McLaren. If we can put four tenths on the car, we will be very competitive. 

"I have to wait for the moment. There is no urgency.”

Wolff had previously spoken positively of Carlos Sainz, another option for Mercedes' 2025 seat.

But Wolff insisted he would not move quickly to snap up Sainz for 2025, admitting: “I’m prepared to compromise in certain decisions."

Verstappen has repeatedly insisted that he is happy at Red Bull despite uncertainty surrounding his future. The Dutchman is under contract with Red Bull until 2028.

Following the news of Red Bull technical guru Adrian Newey’s impending exit, Verstappen said he is not considering his future.

“Like I said before, I think it’s important to always have the quickest car, because that makes it a lot easier to think about what is right,” he said. “At the end of the day, we have a really strong group of people that maybe aren’t talked enough about in the press in general.

“That’s fine, they know what they have to do, they know what they are worth to the team, and they know how important they have been for the current success as well with the car. We just keep on working.”