Toto Wolff makes Max Verstappen’s fate clear by naming his “priority” drivers

Toto Wolff has made it clear who he wants to drive for Mercedes next year - and it won’t be Max Verstappen.

The Mercedes team principal has thrown his faith behind current duo George Russell and Andrea Kimi Antonelli despite a wave of speculation linking him with Verstappen.

Russell remains without a signed contract for 2026 and Wolff has hinted at his interest in Red Bull driver Verstappen.

But ahead of this weekend’s F1 Belgian Grand Prix, Wolff has set the record straight about who he expects to drive for Mercedes next year.

“Discussions have been taking place over the last weeks and months. So they are all up to date,” Wolff told Austrian broadcaster ORF.

“The direction of travel is definitely that we want to continue with George and Kimi. That is the absolute priority

“But you can’t look past someone like Max and the plans he has for the future.

“We did that, but I don’t think there will be any big surprises.”

Reigning F1 champion Max Verstappen now appears likelier than ever to stay at Red Bull in 2026.

He is contracted until the end of 2028 but the presence of a contractual escape clause had got the F1 paddock talking.

The lack of competitiveness from Red Bull’s RB21 compared to the McLaren has also prompted Verstappen to look elsewhere.

He currently sits third in the F1 standings behind Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris, his hopes of a fifth drivers’ title in a row looking slim.

Toto Wolff and Max Verstappen secret Sardinia talks?

F1 fans thought they had outsmarted Wolff and Verstappen by tracking their private jets to the same location.

Ralf Schumacher also stirred the pot by sharing a rumour that the Mercedes boss was meeting the Red Bull driver on the holiday island of Sardinia.

Wolff reacted: “What’s new is that people are doing photo collages with aeroplanes! We’ve never had that before.

“But if you spend your holidays close to each other, it doesn’t mean that you are going to work together in Formula 1.

“We have always gotten along well and, by chance, we like to spend our holidays at the same places.”

Russell always insisted it was unlikely that he would driving for anybody other than Mercedes in 2026.

Although he has still not put pen to paper on a fresh deal, it now feels imminent after Wolff’s commitment to him.

Next year the F1 2026 regulations will kick in, offering a chance for every team in the sport to build a dominant era with new cars.

That means that in 2027, after one year of each team showing what they can do, the chase to sign Verstappen might restart.