Mercedes motorsport boss Toto Wolff has named some interesting candidates as possible replacements for Lewis Hamilton.
The Austrian made the comments while talking about the current world champion’s long-term future with the German manufacturer which currently, only extends until the end of this season with a new contract yet to be signed.
Though that deal is considered a matter of ‘when’ not ‘if’, the chances of it being his last with Mercedes are pretty high, Wolff admits.
“When you have a relationship, you always have to give everything. If you start something with another person, your marriage will collapse,” he was quoted by PlanetF1.
“In F1 anything is possible. Tell me a driver who has not dreamed of being a world champion with Ferrari. I have a lot of respect for them and the only thing I can say is that Hamilton is part of the Mercedes family, although I do not exclude that possibility after 2020.”
The day the 33-year-old does leave the Brackley-based outfit will leave a very big hole to fill given his influence in recent years, but Wolff doesn’t see it as a hole that is unfillable.
“Esteban [Ocon] is my little treasure,” he said. “I’ve known him for a long time and every year he has to respond to high expectations and he does it. It is impressive how he has grown.”
Also Read:
- Hamilton watching Liberty proposals as he ponders F1 future
- Marko disagrees with notion a new Hamilton/ Mercedes deal “as good as done”
Though the Frenchman is the obvious choice as the highest profile Mercedes junior, the 21-year-old is far from the only option.
“Carlos [Sainz] is a very special boy, very intelligent, with the right values, with the right family and he is very fast driver,” Toto stated.
“If he performs well against Nico [Hulkenberg at Renault,] it will be on the radar of all the teams.
“I have always gotten along with Carlos and his father, we have always maintained a very good private relationship,” he added. “We talked about the possibility of being in Mercedes, but he was a Red Bull driver and there was no option.”
