Wolff appears to rule out signing Verstappen to Mercedes

GPblog reported earlier that Verstappen would prefer to stay with Red Bull Racing, however the Dutchman does want to see performance improvements for 2026.

He wants to compete for the world title again, which doesn't seem to be the case this year. If the prospects for the upcoming season are not good, Verstappen may then choose to leave.

Mercedes appears to be the most obvious choice in that case. In a conversation with Austrian ORF, Wolff provided an update on the driver line-up situation in 2026.

“It's not just about the team making a decision. The drivers also need to know where they stand. We have always tried to stick to this rule. And we will do it again now."

Despite rumors that Verstappen's move to Mercedes would already be settled, which is not the case, Wolff said: “The direction we want to take is to continue with George and Kimi. That's our top priority. Everyone is informed.”

Wolff also stated: "There will be no big surprises," about Mercedes' driver lineup next year.

Two weeks ago, Ralf Schumacher started the rumor that Verstappen and Wolff would meet in Sardinia. The mega-yachts of the two were both moored at the Italian island. In the end, GPblog was able to report that the two had not met.

Wolff has also seen all the rumors. The team boss of Mercedes also said: “It's new that people are making photo collages with airplanes. We've never seen that before."

"It's not like if you're on vacation close to each other, you're going to work together in Formula 1. We've always gotten along well. It just happens that we vacation in the same area.”