Toto Wolff questions Mercedes star George Russell’s “mindset” as contract renewal talks heat up

Amid contract negotiations with George Russell, Mercedes F1 boss Toto Wolff has claimed that a driver does not have the right "mindset" if they feel they need a two-year contract to perform better. Wolff has previously claimed that he expects to go into 2026 with his incumbent driver lineup, but neither Russell nor Kimi Antonelli has signed a contract extension yet.

The structure of a new deal for Russell at Mercedes has become one of the biggest talking points throughout the whole saga. Wolff famously likes to offer only 1+1 year contract extensions to his drivers. This may well be causing the delays with finalizing Russell's deal.

While speaking to Sky Sports at the Italian Grand Prix, Wolff admitted that Mercedes has historically only offered 1+1 year deals to its drivers. Presenter Natalie Pinkham then questioned whether this keeps his drivers on edge, or would more security be helpful for their confidence.

Wolff then suggested that he believes this makes no difference, and questioned the mindset of any driver who performs based on the length of their contract.

"I think it makes no difference because they are anyway under tremendous pressure. If a driver says, 'I'd be quicker if I would have a two-year contract', then anyway that mindset is not right," said Wolff.

George Russell now seems to be in a stand-off with Mercedes as talks over an extension have entered into September. Earlier, it was expected that this issue would be resolved during the summer break after Max Verstappen, who was a potential threat to his seat, committed his immediate future to Red Bull.

But the 27-year-old has still not put pen to paper with only eight rounds now remaining in the 2025 season. Toto Wolff has maintained that an extension remains a mere formality, and he expects Russell to sign a deal soon.

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Mercedes creating its own problems with George Russell contract saga, claims pundit

George Russell at the Italian Grand Prix - Source: Getty

F1 pundit Martin Brundle has claimed that Mercedes has "injected too many of its own problems" with regard to its driver lineup by not having secured George Russell on a new contract yet. The veteran also claimed that Russell seems to be "bruised" by the chatter of Mercedes' interest in Max Verstappen over the summer.

Speaking to Sky Sports F1 prior to the Italian GP, Brundle claimed that Russell will not be happy with how his contract situation has been dealt with at Brackley.

"I would have signed George a long time ago, because George is not happy, is he? It's very easy to see that George feels quite bruised about all the Max talk and what have you through the summer," said Brundle.

"But when you look at the calm of McLaren and other teams, I just think they've injected too many of their own problems into the driver lineup. I'd keep him," he added.

Mercedes and Toto Wolff now find themselves in a unique position where they have already admitted that Russell and Kimi Antonelli will be their drivers in 2026, but neither have signed an extension yet.

1+1 year contracts for them would mean Wolff will hold the power to remove one of his drivers after 2026 if Max Verstappen comes knocking. But with the German team having no real alternatives for next year, both drivers also have a huge bargaining chip in their hands.