Wolff hits out at Vowles over Schumacher jibe

Toto Wolff feels James Vowles could have "done without" making comments about Mick Schumacher after overlooking him for the Williams seat.

Schumacher was touted as a potential candidate to replace Logan Sargeant at Williams after his mid-season axing, but Vowles ultimately opted to hand Franco Colapinto his debut. 

Addressing the possibility of Schumacher joining the team, Vowles said that: "I think we have to be straightforward about this. 

“Mick is not special. He has just been good. I think he would come with a lot more experience than Franco does."

As well as dovetailing his WEC Alpine drive, Schumacher is a Mercedes F1 reserve, with Wolff criticising his former strategy chief Vowles.

"I've obviously known James for many years, he's a strategist," Wolff explained to Sky Sports F1.

"Sometimes he says things too straightforwardly, that was a statement he could have done without.

"Mick has won everything there is to win, from F4, F3 and F2, and then of course operated in an environment with Gunther [Steiner], who is brutally tough and that was perhaps not what he needed to develop as a driver.

"That's why he deserved the chance. If you don't give it to him, you shouldn't comment on it, you should let everyone live. That's my opinion."

Each to their own

Wolff went onto add that he understood the need for Vowles to prioritise what was best for Williams, who will land Carlos Sainz alongside Alex Albon from 2025.

"James is a bright mind and he's finding his feet in the team principal's role," he added to media including RacingNews365.

"He [could] have chosen his words [better].

"Mick was crushed in the Haas environment at that stage, but every team needs to take his own decisions for the best interest of the team. 

"Then they also have to decide how they want to talk about their drivers in the media, and so everybody needs to do this in a way that they think is good."

Do you think Mick Schumacher's full-time F1 career is now over following his repeated 2025 snubs? Let us know in the comments and by voting in the poll below!