Wolff never 'flirted outside the team' during contract talks

Mercedes F1 boss Toto Wolff says he was never tempted to "flirt outside the team" or sound out other drivers during his contract talks with Lewis Hamilton and George Russell.

This week, both Mercedes drivers renewed their allegiance to the Brackley squad where they will remain until at least the end of 2025.

Uncertainty regarding Hamilton's future in F1 gave rise to speculation that Mercedes had initiated talks with potential candidates for the seven-time world champion's seat, with Ferrari's Charles Leclerc often cited as a possible successor given Ferrari's current woes.

However, Wolff revealed that contrary to rumors, he had not held any contract talks with drivers outside of the team.

• Read also: Hamilton still has 'unfinished business' at Mercedes

"I've always said when we renew [driver contracts], I don't want to flirt outside [the team] if I have a good relationship [with the current drivers]," Wolff told Sky Sports F1 in Monza on Friday.

"Only when I see that things are not going in the right direction would I then test the markets, but I didn't do it."

Wolff also shed some light on how he typically approaches a negotiation, revealing that he doesn't go head-to-head with a driver until the basic details have been worked out by the two parties.

"The way that you lose [in negotiations] and that I have learned to handle is that we are not going head-to-head, starting to negotiate the nitty gritty," he said.

"We will leave our teams to do that and then approach each other. Once that was done, we get together and say: 'There are three open points, what are we doing about these?'.

"Generally we meet in the middle and that is what we have done."

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