Max Verstappen and George Russell snubbed by Toto Wolff as telling decision unveiled | F1 | Sport
Toto Wolff named Lewis Hamilton as the ‘GOAT’, putting the seven-time world champion as his F1 representative on his athlete Mount Rushmore, with his wife Susie Wolff as his bonus fifth pick. Hamilton drove with Mercedes for 12 years, winning six Drivers’ Championship titles during that period and helping the Silver Arrows establish one of the greatest dynasties in F1 history alongside team-mates Nico Rosberg and Valtteri Bottas.
Despite leaving for Ferrari at the end of the 2024 season, Hamilton retains a strong relationship with Wolff and his former Mercedes team-mates. His ex-team principal made it clear that his assessment of the 40-year-old has not changed when he was prompted to name his top athletes for a social media challenge.
“So what would be my top four athletes for Mount Rushmore?” he said, mulling over the question in a video shared on Mercedes’ social media channels. “Lewis Hamilton, obviously the goat. [Cristiano] Ronaldo. Tom Brady. Roger Federer. But I need to have a fifth one, and that’s Susie, obviously.”
Wolff neglected to name incumbent star driver George Russell or reigning world champion Max Verstappen in his top four, despite the latter’s historic run of F1 success. The 28-year-old is looking to tie Michael Schumacher with a fifth successive crown in 2025.
However, after finishing fourth in the sprint and third in the Brazilian Grand Prix last time out, he has a mountain to climb. Verstappen trails in-form McLaren driver Lando Norris by 49 points with three race weekends remaining, while Oscar Piastri is sandwiched between the two World Championship contenders.
According to the Mercedes boss, this is now a two-horse race. “That ship had sailed,” Wolff said, looking at Verstappen’s title aspirations. “I think just let them race, make no contact, but the gap that Lando has now is very, very solid.
“But he can’t afford a DNF either, because then it swings in the other direction. Obviously, from a spectator standpoint, you would want to see that going into the last race, equal points or similar points, but [Norris] was impressive in the last few races, how he held the nerves and how he scored the points.”
Norris, however, is not ready to rest just yet. “I’m sure Max is going to be a threat in terms of races, and you never know with the championship,” he declared after his win in Brazil. “So, it’s pointless trying to guess and come up with these things.
“With how quick he was, he would have won if he started higher up. But that’s racing. Not everyone puts it together, and it’s easy to make mistakes in the world that we live in. Max will be a threat because he always is. He’s always there, he’s always fighting, and I’m sure he’ll fight to the end. I look forward to it.”
