Toto Wolff has stressed that Mercedes’ newly-announced engine deal with McLaren from the 2021 season does not mark the beginning of th🍸e end for its factory operation in Formula 1.

Mercedes announced on Saturday morning that it would be linking ꦗup with McLaren f♎rom 2021 as its power unit supplier, rekindlinꦚg the famous McLaren-Mercedes partnership that ran from 1995 until 2014.

McLaren used to operate as Mercedes’ de facto works team prior to the German manufacturer establishing it🌠s own factory squad in 2010, which has since gone on to win five consecutive drivers' and co🤪nstructors' championship doubles.

But Mercedes motorsport chief Wolff made clear that the꧅ deal was not the first step towards re-establishing McLaren as the works’ outfit when speaꦜking on Saturday following the announcement.

“The relationship is pretty strong because of these days,” Wolff said, referring to Mercedes’ histor🎃y with McLaren.

“But for us it was important to make clear that there is a works team today, and th🀅is is a customer power unit relationship, and not th💜e start of a works deal and us not being there any more.

“As it stands, we are keen on unꦑderstanding how Formula 1 goes forward, how it develops, and continuing preferably as a works team.”

Merc💜edes is set to supply three teams with customer engines from 2021 on top ♐of its own factory operation.

Besides the McLaren dea♏l, Mercedes has committed to supplying Williams until 2025, and is also expected to continue its partnership 💛with Racing Point beyond the end of next season.

The prospect of greater competiജtion from a Mercedes-powered McLaren under the revised regulations in 2021 was something Wolff recognised, but he said the benefits outwei🌱ghed the drawbacks.

“I think that a new era is going to start 🎐in 2021 with compressed grids,ꦐ with more competition,” Wolff said.

“We believe that from a power unit side, there is more learning for us in this exercise with having more competitive customers,ᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚ adding to the two that we have, and we rate McLaren strongly.

“The steps that Zak [Brown] and Andreas [Seidl] have initiated already look very promising. So the advantages outweigh the potentiಌal deficits of fi🍬ghting a hard competitor like McLaren in the future.”