19/08/2025 08:20
Toto Wolff has revealed that contract negotiations between himself
and Lewis Hamilton were "always a problem", to the extent that they
eventually outsourced the process. The Mercedes team principal has
explained it was a "hated" experience on both their parts because
of how close they are. Hamilton has since moved on to pastures new
at Ferrari, but with Wolff in the midst of securing the immediate
futures of his current drivers, George Russell and Kimi Antonelli,
and having been squarely at the centre of F1's rumour mill at
recent months for his talks with Max Verstappen over a potential
switch from Red Bull, the Austrian's negotiating tactics have been
a hot topic. Nico Rosberg recently explained how "horrible" it was
dealing with the 53-year-old because of his tendency to
strategically disappear through the process . It has also been
speculated that many of the 2016 F1 drivers' champions and
Hamilton's contract renewals were thrashed out around Wolff's
kitchen table. When asked about that and how he handles the
oftentimes awkward situations, the Brackley squad's boss reflected
on how difficult it became with the seven-time F1 drivers' champion
- and the steps they took because of it. "What makes it even more
tricky is that you're negotiating with someone who is your ally,"
he told Formula.hu . "Someone where your objectives are pretty
close. "So for Lewis and me, it was always a problem. Because, for
two and a half years, we were the greatest of friends. And 100%
aligned, and we shared our private lives and everything. And then
we had those two months of negotiation. "And both of us always
hated it. Because in that situation, maybe you're not aligned. So
finally we changed it, and we got someone else involved who did
that. And it was sorted out within a few days." Expanding on his
point, Wolff highlighted why leaving it to the professionals is
sometimes the best course of action, pointing out how "emotional"
people can become when negotiating on their own behalf. "So that's
why with Nico and with George and all the drivers it's always going
to be tricky," he stated. "On one side, you want to be in a good
place in a relationship. On the other side, sometimes negotiations
are tough. "And it's difficult when the other side is emotional and
a sports person rather than someone who does it every day."
