P1racenews AI automatic summary:
Toto Wolff regrets that Mercedes wasn’t the one to bring Max Verstappen into F1 – but what if it was?
On a recent The Race Members Club exclusive F1 Extra podcast, Ben Anderson addressed the hypothetical scenario of Toto Wolff signing Max Verstappen in 2014 over Red Bull. In this alternative universe where Verstappen joins Mercedes, he likely spends another season in junior categories before moving to F1. Verstappen’s potential GP2 success in 2015 could have led to an early F1 debut with Manor in 2016. With Rosberg’s contract renewal in 2016, a Verstappen-Mercedes partnership could have reshaped the F1 grid for the 2017 season, possibly leaving Red Bull with a Ricciardo-Sainz pairing. The domino effect of Verstappen’s potential move to Mercedes could have impacted driver line-ups and title races in subsequent seasons.
