Antonelli has eased urgency to sign Verstappen says WolffToto Wolff has given another strong indication that Max Verstappen will not join Mercedes in 2027, saying Kimi Antonelli's emergence means the team is no longer under immediate pressure to recruit the reigning benchmark. You always have to try to have the best drivers in the car, Wolff told Belgian newspaper La Derniere Heure. Max remains the benchmark among drivers, but we may no longer be in the immediate urgency of recruiting a driver of his calibre. Instead, Wolff says Mercedes must think long term about who will be leading the field in three, five, or even ten years . That's why we set up the young driver program, with kids as young as 10 years old competing in karts, said the Austrian.