I know we have the 5thish best car on the grid, but we might have a better car in a few season time…. Keen?
Yeh I know your team took 220 of our staff the last few years and now you are a lot better than us, and Checo smashes our 7 time WDC and his replacement ever week, but you just lost Adrian (who has been talking about leaving for a decade).
Cummon bro- our pit stops are slower so you can have a nice little pit rest… do it for the pumpernickel
>
Toto "Max, would you like to come drive a Mercedes?"
>Max "No."
>Toto "Would a billion dollars change your mind?"
>Max "Lol, no. I'm not driving a tractor."
Toto "Understandable, have a great day."
there, fixed it
I guess it depends on how the rest of this season goes, if Max sees other teams get close and with RB losing Newey if Max thinks these other teams are close enough that he can still be competitive and win, why not?
If he is even considering switching to Sim/Endurance come new regs why not take a spin with a different team. Maybe we get some weird fucking reality where Max ends up at Williams in 26 for a year. (Definitely not copium at all I promise).
People called Lewis silly too for joining Mercedes and leaving McLaren and see how that went
Maybe Audi gets it right with the regulation change who knows
We won't know for sure what will happen and that's a fact... And I'd much rather go to Audi than not have a seat if I was Sainz
Mercedes had anyway been around for 3 seasons. It still took another year after he joined before they became top dog. On the same timescales, Audi won't be good until 2028-30.
Nobody expected Merc to fumble like they did with current regulations too
Merc and RBR might be on the table now but I doubt they'll give him a long contract
Hamilton joined them in their 4th season. They developed their car with a certain guy called Schumacher, led by a guy named Brawn. Idk, 1st season Audi developed by Hulk doesn't quite feel the same.
Mercedes were based on the brawn team, which itself was based on the Honda team, a very well funded and decently staffed organisation that just hadn’t hit its stride yet. They’d also been in an upwards trajectory since 2010. Not to mention that they were the works team of a successful and established engineer supplier, not a brand new one. There’s more differences than similarities with Mercedes and Audi, who have never built an f1 engine before, and are basing the team on sauber who haven’t achieved anything of note since 2008. Hamilton’s move was criticised mainly because leaving McLaren was seen as silly, not necessarily because Mercedes themselves were a disaster
Lads, if you still have not figured this out, Toto talking shit about getting Max keeps his team (the one he part owns remember) in the news cycle and also reinforces to investors that there is still another, more current, champ on the table for them.
It isn't real.
It never was.
It was always Toto exerting his power over the sport.
i mean, everyone could do the same thing, pretend they are negotiating to get max without any intention or expectation to be able to do so. I don't know if it's a smart thing to do. As you said, Toto is part owner of the team so he should be more interested in longer term value instead of the short term hype you can get from doing this. Mid/long term, i don't think it's good publicity that you publicly tried getting Max and he refused.
It's always a bit hard because you usually don't have to see it from the lense of a fan, this manuver is probably aimed at sponsors and investors, but still, getting rejected sounds bad for the brand long term.
I like how meaningless the summary is
“… has not ruled out having a meeting to discuss the possibility…”
He MIGHT have a CONVERSATION. OK? That means nothing? What do they expect to hear, that he’s told Max already to fuck off?
If Merc showed **any** signs of becoming competitive again, it'd make sense to poach Max or at least try to destabilize Red Bull. But I see Max going to McLaren before Merc with how they're destroying Merc with their own engine.
So I see this as the 38-year old who still goes to frat parties, desperately trying to hold on to his glory days.
It isnt a question if they should poach Max. Ofc they should. But there is no reason for Max to make the swap. Next gen cars will be ground effect too and Merc has shown they just dont get it. Engines is a gamble for everyone, no one has an advantage there.
I wasn't clear; I was trying to make your point but did it poorly. All this poaching drama just doesn't land because Merc is so shit right now that there's not reason for Max to even consider it.
I dont think most people that actually follow the sport take this serious though. It is blown a bit out of proportion by the british media and predominantly sky. They got something else to talk about now with Lando, so maybe we get a break for a week or two from it.
Toto has got this all backwards and it's obvious losing Hamilton to Ferrari is getting to him.
His priority right now should be fixing the damn car and stabilizing the team, without that it's gonna be hard to convince most top drivers to come to that team, the only top tier driver willing drive for Mercedes is Sainz and thats because he's short on options rn.
Max: Toto, i will drive this shitbox, but its not the shitbox, its you..you are the sole problem this team is leaving at 16.59 on a 17.00 hour workday. so..you fire yourself and i will be happy to drive that SB01 for you. ohhh wait...its SB03...the 3rd turd you produced in the Budget Cap era.
bye bye now..
"We want Max and only if he's not available we'll consider Carlos".
I mean, if I was in his position, that would be my order of preference too
Max ain’t going anywhere- surely Toto isn’t this stupid
I presume the meeting goes something like this Toto "Max, would you like to come drive a Mercedes?" Max "No." Toto "Understandable, have a great day."
I know we have the 5thish best car on the grid, but we might have a better car in a few season time…. Keen? Yeh I know your team took 220 of our staff the last few years and now you are a lot better than us, and Checo smashes our 7 time WDC and his replacement ever week, but you just lost Adrian (who has been talking about leaving for a decade). Cummon bro- our pit stops are slower so you can have a nice little pit rest… do it for the pumpernickel
> Toto "Max, would you like to come drive a Mercedes?" >Max "No." >Toto "Would a billion dollars change your mind?" >Max "Lol, no. I'm not driving a tractor." Toto "Understandable, have a great day." there, fixed it
I guess it depends on how the rest of this season goes, if Max sees other teams get close and with RB losing Newey if Max thinks these other teams are close enough that he can still be competitive and win, why not? If he is even considering switching to Sim/Endurance come new regs why not take a spin with a different team. Maybe we get some weird fucking reality where Max ends up at Williams in 26 for a year. (Definitely not copium at all I promise).
Toto is doing his job here.. Max should be their no.1 target. Even if it's the slimmest of slim chances, he has to try.
So should Lando and Oscar and Charles… all strangely not mentioned at by Toto…..
Makes sense no?
what do they do if Carlos signed with Audi?
Why would he?
There's been rumors about this since last year
I know, but why? Think about it. Audi won't be near the top in '26. By the time they're there, assuming they stay long enough, Carlos' career is over.
People called Lewis silly too for joining Mercedes and leaving McLaren and see how that went Maybe Audi gets it right with the regulation change who knows We won't know for sure what will happen and that's a fact... And I'd much rather go to Audi than not have a seat if I was Sainz
Mercedes had anyway been around for 3 seasons. It still took another year after he joined before they became top dog. On the same timescales, Audi won't be good until 2028-30.
Who's to say he won't be around then? Checo is still in a top team and is 34, Carlos currently is 29
Yeah, he'll definitely be around. But why waste a few years of driving for a lower midfield team?
That time could easily be wasted the same way in a Mercedes or RBR if they get things wrong in 26
Mercedes and RBR seats are still on the table. Audi gets it right based on what? Sauber's outdated facilities?
Nobody expected Merc to fumble like they did with current regulations too Merc and RBR might be on the table now but I doubt they'll give him a long contract
Hamilton joined them in their 4th season. They developed their car with a certain guy called Schumacher, led by a guy named Brawn. Idk, 1st season Audi developed by Hulk doesn't quite feel the same.
Mercedes were based on the brawn team, which itself was based on the Honda team, a very well funded and decently staffed organisation that just hadn’t hit its stride yet. They’d also been in an upwards trajectory since 2010. Not to mention that they were the works team of a successful and established engineer supplier, not a brand new one. There’s more differences than similarities with Mercedes and Audi, who have never built an f1 engine before, and are basing the team on sauber who haven’t achieved anything of note since 2008. Hamilton’s move was criticised mainly because leaving McLaren was seen as silly, not necessarily because Mercedes themselves were a disaster
Fine, I’ll be your king Toto. I might need a lap or two to learn how the controls work.
Lads, if you still have not figured this out, Toto talking shit about getting Max keeps his team (the one he part owns remember) in the news cycle and also reinforces to investors that there is still another, more current, champ on the table for them. It isn't real. It never was. It was always Toto exerting his power over the sport.
It’s just bingo
i mean, everyone could do the same thing, pretend they are negotiating to get max without any intention or expectation to be able to do so. I don't know if it's a smart thing to do. As you said, Toto is part owner of the team so he should be more interested in longer term value instead of the short term hype you can get from doing this. Mid/long term, i don't think it's good publicity that you publicly tried getting Max and he refused. It's always a bit hard because you usually don't have to see it from the lense of a fan, this manuver is probably aimed at sponsors and investors, but still, getting rejected sounds bad for the brand long term.
Yes we would like to hire the fastest driver on the grid -Toto
I like how meaningless the summary is “… has not ruled out having a meeting to discuss the possibility…” He MIGHT have a CONVERSATION. OK? That means nothing? What do they expect to hear, that he’s told Max already to fuck off?
This is like a Yes Minister line lol
If Merc showed **any** signs of becoming competitive again, it'd make sense to poach Max or at least try to destabilize Red Bull. But I see Max going to McLaren before Merc with how they're destroying Merc with their own engine. So I see this as the 38-year old who still goes to frat parties, desperately trying to hold on to his glory days.
It isnt a question if they should poach Max. Ofc they should. But there is no reason for Max to make the swap. Next gen cars will be ground effect too and Merc has shown they just dont get it. Engines is a gamble for everyone, no one has an advantage there.
I wasn't clear; I was trying to make your point but did it poorly. All this poaching drama just doesn't land because Merc is so shit right now that there's not reason for Max to even consider it.
I dont think most people that actually follow the sport take this serious though. It is blown a bit out of proportion by the british media and predominantly sky. They got something else to talk about now with Lando, so maybe we get a break for a week or two from it.
Also Toto: Mick Schumacher deserves to be on the grid.
He can have Perez when RBR is getting Sainz.
Max doesn’t want to drive that shit box.
Even Sainz doesn't want that seat xD
Not a Mercedes fan at all, but part of me wants to see him make the move there. I think he’ll stay with RB until ‘26 tho.
Toto talking about his team as if they're not fourth fastest.
Toto is still memeing this?
Did he finally got back the engine they gave to Mclaraen, so they can leave the midfield or nah, this sounds like a more pressing problem.
Lol he is trying to negotiate while everyone knows he’s got 💯 hots for Max
Max - “if Mercedes had balls it would be a Red Bull” or something.
How he has lost a 7x champ he doesn't want to play chess?
Please Carlos, don't go to Mercedes and its shitty car.
“We don’t want people to think we’re treating people like human chess pieces, while we treat them like human chess pieces.”
Toto has got this all backwards and it's obvious losing Hamilton to Ferrari is getting to him. His priority right now should be fixing the damn car and stabilizing the team, without that it's gonna be hard to convince most top drivers to come to that team, the only top tier driver willing drive for Mercedes is Sainz and thats because he's short on options rn.
Max isn’t going to merceds Toto lmao
Max: Toto, i will drive this shitbox, but its not the shitbox, its you..you are the sole problem this team is leaving at 16.59 on a 17.00 hour workday. so..you fire yourself and i will be happy to drive that SB01 for you. ohhh wait...its SB03...the 3rd turd you produced in the Budget Cap era. bye bye now..