"Toto has been talking too much": Fans react to the Mercedes boss hoping Max Verstappen signs with them for 2027

F1 fans were left frustrated after Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff mentioned that he could sign Red Bull driver Max Verstappen for the 2027 season. The Dutch driver has been linked with a move away from the Austrian team to the Brackley-based outfit since the start of the 2024 season.

Wolff has been open about his desire to bring Verstappen into the Mercedes fold, amidst reports of internal struggles and performance-related issues at the Milton Keynes-based outfit.

Although the duo held initial talks this year before the summer break, Max Verstappen decided to honor his contract and stay with Red Bull for the 2026 season. However, the Austrian might have the chance to get the four-time F1 world champion for the 2027 season, given that he has some performance-related clauses in his contract that could allow the latter to leave Red Bull Racing.

As per RacingNews365, Toto Wolff suggested that he was hopeful that Max Verstappen would choose them if the opportunity arose and even took a cheeky dig at paying a lower price for the Dutch driver, saying:

"It's hopefully us and then I only need to pay 10 per cent...and that is exactly what I said to Raymond [Vermeulen],"

F1 fans gave their reactions to Toto Wolff's comments about Max Verstappen in the comments section of the post, saying:

"Toto has been talking too much"

"10% is super optimistic. Mclaren pays the drunkest 20.. So count on 40M as a minimum,"

"This gut just admitted it,"

"Good luck, Toto."

"Imagine if it were Red Bull treating Russell this way, the fuss the press would make about it."

"Why is he still talking about Max when he said that it's not happening next year? This is getting ridiculous,"

Snapshot of F1 fans' reactions...Credits-Instagram

Max Verstappen has a contract with Red Bull until the end of the 2028 season, having signed the long-term deal after winning his maiden world title in 2021.

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Mercedes team boss gives an insight into his dynamic with Max Verstappen

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff stated that he had an amicable relationship with Max Verstappen's father, Jos Verstappen, and even admitted that the dynamic changed during the tense 2021 battle.

As quoted by the aforementioned source, the 52-year-old reflected and said:

"I've known Jos and Max for a long time. The relationship with Jos was always amicable. Same generation, same shit upbringing, so we always had that. We went through the ups and downs; 2021 was bad from either side. It got out of control - the emotions take over, and you become so obsessed with your own perceptions and perspectives that it's difficult to see the other side.

"And I think that caused a bit of a crisis, but after a while, it settled down, and we had that clearing conversation a year later in Singapore with Jos, and since then, we've maintained a good relationship."

There was initially a lot of animosity between the Verstappen group and Wolff owing to a tense battle between the Dutch driver and Lewis Hamilton.