A few months after the night in Abu Dhabi 2021, Toto Wolff confessed that the wounds left by the Yas Marina affair (which awarded the first world title to Max Verstappen due to the controversial management of the then race director Michael Masi) would not have never healed.
The dualism with Red Bull that exploded three years ago has never abated, in the last three seasons the lack of competitiveness on the technical front has ousted Mercedes from the world championship challenge, but when the opportunity arises to annoy Red Bull, Wolff he never backs down.
Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing
Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images
The latest opportunity was offered by the Horner case which broke out last February, an affair which triggered a lot of tension within the team. Wolff seized on Verstappen’s discontent, alarmed by the possibility of seeing Helmut Marko shown the door by Christian Horner, offering Max the opportunity for a change of scenery and putting a very financially attractive offer on the table.
What really annoyed Red Bull was above all Wolff’s choice to make his intentions public, a strategy that aims to put even more tension within the world champion team, already shaken by the vicissitudes of the Horner affair and by the fresh farewell of Adrian Newey.
Red Bull’s disappointment emerged on several occasions from Horner’s words, but now Oliver Mintzlaff, CEO of the Austrian group’s corporate sports programs, has also come out into the open. In addition to denying rumors according to which Verstappen could leave the team to join Mercedes, Mintzlaff judged Wolff’s attitude to be “incorrect”, underlining a lack of respect on the part of the representative of an opposing team.
Toto Wolff, Team Principal and CEO, Mercedes-AMG F1 Team
Picture of: Motorsport Images
“I can imagine the pressure that Wolff may be under after years of failure – Mintzlaff told the Bild Am Sonntag newspaper – but I think Toto should focus on his team’s problems, given that he has a lot of them. It’s also an issue that has to do with respect, I don’t think it’s right for him to continue talking about the personnel of another team.”
“Max still has a long-term contract with Red Bull – continued Mintzlaff – and he has never said a single word about not wanting to respect it. I’m not at all worried by the rumors according to which he is considering a change of team, we just want calm to return within our team, and that’s what Max wants too.”
“Peace of mind is essential if you want to be successful in sport in the long term, and this is also the case in Formula 1. I would also add that I don’t see any reason why Max would want to leave Red Bull. He has the fastest car at his disposal, he wants to stay world champion and with us he has the best chance of achieving his goals.”
Shortly before qualifying held yesterday in Miami, Wolff and Helmut Marko met in the paddock, secluding themselves for a conversation that lasted a few minutes with the cameras at a safe distance. Marko subsequently denied that the topic discussed with Wolff was the Mintzlaff interview, cutting short the Mercedes affair. “I remember that Max has a contract with us – explained Marko – and given how Mercedes is going at the moment, I don’t think it can be considered a valid alternative to Red Bull”.
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