Toto Wolff advised to sign Max Verstappen as Lewis Hamilton’s replacement for the 2025 F1 season by former driver

Former F1 driver Christian Danner suggested that Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff should sign Max Verstappen as Lewis Hamilton's replacement in the team for the 2025 season.

The seven-time world champion shocked everyone by announcing that he would be leaving the German team after 11 years with them at the end of the 2024 season. Hamilton won six of his seven world championships with Mercedes from 2014 to 2021 and has decided to leave them for Ferrari after two unsuccessful seasons with the German team.

Speaking with Bild, Danner advised the Mercedes team principal to go for Max Verstappen as a potential replacement for Lewis Hamilton in the team for 2025. He believes that every name should be discussed despite the Dutchman having a contract with Red Bull until 2028. He said:

“Every name has to be discussed! There must be no legal or monetary obstacles. Age doesn’t matter at all either. The same applies to contracts. Every driver who is at Silver Arrows level has to be a topic. That’s why Mercedes also has to think about Max Verstappen!”

Danner also proposed the names of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri as viable candidates despite them signing a contract extension with McLaren recently. He said:

“Max would of course be the best possible solution, but the McLaren drivers Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris would also both be top successors for Lewis. Both have everything they need to win multiple World Championship titles – if they have the right car.”

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Red Bull team advisor makes a scathing remark about Max Verstappen's potential move to Mercedes

Red Bull team advisor Helmut Marko stated that he was aware that Toto Wolff might come for Max Verstappen to replace Hamilton but was confident that the Dutch driver would stick with them.

Speaking with Sport.de, the Austrian said:

"Toto is going to try, but he will not be successful. Max has a good memory and has not forgotten Mercedes' accusations. The 2021 Silverstone crash and the Abu Dhabi season finale are examples of this."

Although it seems highly unlikely that Mercedes would go for Max Verstappen or vice versa for next year, it would be fascinating to see who joins George Russell in the second seat on the team next year.

There have been many drivers whose names have been spoken about as Lewis Hamilton's replacement but Wolff had earlier clarified that he was in no hurry to choose the seven-time world champion's successor in the team.