A young Max Verstappen was already making several waves in the F1 paddock in 2014, the year he made his Grand Prix weekend debut in an FP1 session in Japan. Red Bull and Mercedes were tussling for his signature, with multiple options on the table for the Dutchman. But before those teams got even a whiff of Verstappen’s full potential, former Toro Rosso co-owner Gerhard Berger had already endorsed his credentials.
Berger, a 10-time race winner in F1, recalled talking to Niki Lauda, who was the non-executive director at Mercedes. Berger told him that Verstappen was an extraordinary talent that the Silver Arrows should look to sign.
“One day I said to Niki Lauda: you have to take Max Verstappen,” he said in an interview with Gazzetta dello Sport. “Niki, who was already an advisor at Mercedes at the time, called Toto Wolff on the spot. ‘We absolutely have to make sure we get Verstappen.”
Wolff, however, was not convinced, and understandably so. He had two World Champions — Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg — on the team which is why his response was a bit mellow, Berger revealed.
The Mercedes Team Principal also trusted his own talent pool and pipeline, which included Valtteri Bottas, who ultimately succeeded Rosberg in 2017. While Bottas did a decent job, matching Berger’s win tally and helping Mercedes win eight titles in a row, Wolff ultimately became regretful about passing out on the opportunity to sign Verstappen.
Dutchman Max Verstappen, 17, becomes the youngest driver in Formula 1 history http://t.co/hxdZeP2JcC pic.twitter.com/T6WEYDSXZ6
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) October 3, 2014
Toro Rosso signed him in the end, which is where Verstappen’s relationship with Red Bull, its parent team, began. It was Lauda’s compatriot Helmut Marko who placed full faith in him and promoted him to F1 at the age of just 17 in 2015, despite him not having any F2 experience under his belt.
Wolff is undoing his mistakes about Verstappen
Fast forward to 2024 and the Mercedes team boss is not willing to lose out on any other potential generational talent. That’s why he was adamant about giving Kimi Antonelli the chance to compete at the highest level at just 18.
When Hamilton’s departure to Ferrari was confirmed in 2024 February, Wolff took a few months, but then revealed Antonelli as his new driver and began his grooming process for a promotion to the promised land.
He even dubbed Antonelli the ‘next Verstappen,’ a prophecy that has yet to materialize. The 18-year-old will be starting his rookie F1 season in 2025, stepping into Hamilton’s seat, and will be under immense pressure to fill the seven-time world champion’s shoes.
With Mercedes aiming to return to championship contention, Antonelli won’t be given any slack when it comes to performance expectations. Given the Italian’s relative lack of racing experience, it will be intriguing to see how he handles the pressure at the highest level of motorsport.
