Headline: Wolff slams door on Sainz swap talk, commits to Antonelli for 2026
Carlos Sainz’s podium in Baku was the kind of performance that lights up WhatsApp groups in the paddock. Williams on the steps, the Spaniard back in the conversation — and naturally, the spotlight swung to Mercedes, where rookie Kimi Antonelli’s step up has been anything but simple.
But if anyone was hoping Sainz might wear silver again, Toto Wolff has put that to bed. Speaking to Sky Italia, the Mercedes team boss dismissed the latest rumor cycle linking Sainz to a swap with Antonelli — to either Williams or Alpine — calling the chatter “completely nonsense.” He went further: “He will stay here in 2026 100%.”
So that’s the line from Brackley. No demotions, no mid-cycle rethink, no quiet reshuffle via the customer teams. Whether you view that as defiance, protection, or simply long-term planning depends on how you see Mercedes’ rebuild.
Sainz, of course, chose a very different path for 2025. After departing Ferrari, he committed to Williams — a move many pegged as a short-term bridge rather than a destination. Early bumps didn’t help that narrative, but the Azerbaijan Grand Prix changed the tone. A podium at a street fight like Baku is more than a good day out; it’s proof he’s still a driver who drags results from complicated weekends. And it’s exactly the sort of result that stirs the “shouldn’t he be in a top car?” brigade.
The Antonelli question sits right in the middle of all this. Mercedes has never been big on rookies. George Russell spent his apprenticeship at Williams, learned the grind, then made the promotion. Antonelli — a prodigious junior talent — was a break from that playbook. It’s why every mistake, every awkward weekend, is being framed as a referendum on the decision rather than what it generally is: a young driver learning, in public, under huge expectation.
Wolff hasn’t sugarcoated it either. He’s admitted Antonelli’s opening phase has been “underwhelming,” which only poured fuel on the swaps-and-loans rumor fire. Yet the message hasn’t changed: Mercedes believes in the Italian and intends to carry him into the 2026 rules reset. Officially, neither Antonelli nor Russell is signed for that season, but Wolff’s been consistent in projecting continuity.
For his part, Sainz hasn’t been playing games with the narrative. On the High Performance Podcast, he was open about the 2025 seat hunt and confirmed he’d had conversations with Wolff. “We spoke a lot with Toto and everyone else at the time, and I was certainly one of the options that was considered,” Sainz said. “But how close was I? You can ask Toto that. But I think he is very happy with Kimi Antonelli.”
That last line is telling. In a market as political as F1’s, a driver of Sainz’s experience knows when a door isn’t actually a door. Mercedes is building a future that likely puts development mileage on Antonelli now, trusting it pays off across the 2026 regulation change. It’s a gamble, yes — but so is everything at the sharp end when the rules flip.
The other side of the equation is Williams. Sainz’s decision to anchor there in 2025 came with risk, but he’s bringing credibility, points, and standards to a team that’s been clawing back respectability. If you’re James Vowles, you don’t even entertain the thought of a midstream driver trade after the sort of days Sainz can deliver. You back the project and take the momentum.
None of this means the speculation will stop. That’s the sport. A rough weekend for Antonelli or a standout Saturday from Sainz will start the cycle again. But for now, Wolff’s words are as firm as we’ve heard them: Mercedes isn’t swapping its rookie, not to Williams, not to Alpine, not at all. And if the team principal is staking that position publicly, it’s because he knows the optics and is comfortable with the bet.
It also makes strategic sense. The 2025 campaign is a bridge year before the 2026 reset. Mercedes can afford to take some pain now while sculpting a driver pairing it trusts for the long haul. If Antonelli levels up across the second half of the season — and plenty of rookies do — the noise will fade on its own.
Sainz, meanwhile, will keep doing what he does: turning weekends, pouncing on opportunity, and reminding everyone he’s the most resourceful driver not in a factory title fight. Williams won’t complain about that. And unless something fundamental shifts, neither will Mercedes.
