In 2021 the last act of the race weekends was the inevitable Wolff-Horner back and forth. The journalists had the task of reporting the statements to the two interested parties and waiting for the reaction, which arrived promptly.
Yesterday in Shanghai it felt like going back three years. Wolff spoke first, primed on the topic of 'Verstappen', Toto's (no longer secret) desire, given that since the weekend in Jeddah he has made no secret of being very ready to welcome him should Max decide to change scenery.
There was no sharp reply in Saudi Arabia, but only because Horner was dealing with bigger problems at the time. In Shanghai the Red Bull team principal decided to respond, without resorting to foil.
“There are many factors that play an important role in the choices a driver makes – began Wolff in the press conference following the Chinese Grand Prix – from a more rational point of view the priority is to have the most competitive single-seater, but in some cases there are also deeper reasons, other factors, and I think this is Max's case. Will we convince him? Max knows the world of motorsport better than anyone and will make the best decision for him, but I believe some factors will have an important impact.”
“I believe that Max and his management will evaluate what is best for their future by evaluating many aspects – added Wolff – for our part I believe that we will be in an excellent position in 2026, we are ambitious and the objectives we have set are important, we have a lot of confidence in the new power unit. If I were Max maybe I would stay at Red Bull in 2025… but I'm not Max. Obviously we have contacts with many drivers, we evaluate all the opportunities, so it shouldn't be surprising that Max is also among the contacts, but we are certainly not at the point where it talks about the duration of the contract or things like that.”
A few minutes later, after being informed of Wolff's statements, Horner's reply arrived. “I can assure you that there is no ambiguity about where Max Verstappen will be next year. I don't think Toto's problems are due to his drivers, I think he has other priorities to focus on rather than talking about riders who are not available on the market. I think this whole thing is just about making a mess.
Why on earth would you want (referring to Verstappen) to leave this team? Mercedes are also behind their customers at the moment (McLaren and Aston Martin) so I think he (Wolff) would be better off spending his time focusing on the team rather than the driver market. You know, George Russell's contract expires at the end of 2025, maybe he might not be so keen on staying there in '26…”.
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