SAO PAULO, Brazil -- Toto Wolff said his controversial phone call to Jos Verstappen was supposed to be a private chat between racing enthusiasts and was not intended as advice or a warning to pass on to Max Verstappen.
The Mercedes boss called the Red Bull driver's father ahead of the Brazilian Grand Prix and discussed the possible ramifications of Verstappen damaging the chances of title protagonists Lewis Hamilton or Nico Rosberg at one of the remaining rounds. But Wolff said the phone call was never meant to be made public and that the content of the call has been taken out of context in the media.
"This thing is really blown out of proportion," he said. "I don't think even Lewis and Nico care, and they don't expect him [Verstappen] to race in any way differently to before, and that's why they will not change their approach [either]. In the same way, this wasn't meant as advice for Max, it's just that two racing enthusiasts had a private discussion that has been dragged out in the public.
"It is a complete non-story for me. I had a really nice conversation with Jos like I have had many nice conversations in the past about many things like driving, young drivers and on everything including his daughter and karting, I've had him for dinner at my house! So what's all that nonsense?"
Asked whether he felt Verstappen should back off around the Mercedes drivers, Wolff added: "I'll tell you what I said: I think he is a great driver who has incredible skill and is refreshing as a character. He is spontaneous and intelligent. Outside of the Red Bull team I am a really big fan and he is just what the doctor ordered in Formula One. I think that a lot of positive stuff in Formula One is created around headlines and the last thing I want is to change his approach because it is important for Formula One.
"I didn't say that he should move out of the way or to race in a different way, the things I discussed with Jos were two things: First of all I felt, unfortunately for Max, there was a negative spin in some of the media around his driving, which I said was unjustified in my eyes and that I felt it needed to be counter-steered somehow.
"I did it only out of sympathy for Max and Jos and nothing else, and I think that him [Jos] being at the race was an important factor and it was the set-up of the Verstappen family for 20 years. That's why Jos being present was, I think, important for Max. It was a personal opinion, not as someone from Mercedes, and just a personal conversation I would have with him regularly. And he acknowledged it. "Number two was that there are two races to the end and if an accident would happen it would add to the negative spin from the media, which could be avoided. It was just to consider that this is not as important for Max as it is for the other two and we are in a very fortunate position that whoever wins is going to be a Mercedes driver so it was out of sympathy for Max."