Three days after his 52nd birthday everything is clear: Toto Wolff has extended his contract as head of motorsport for the Mercedes team. The Austrian, who is also a shareholder in the Formula 1 racing team, immediately appeared aggressive.
There hadn’t been any major doubts anyway. But now the ink is dry: Toto Wolff is continuing his commitment as head of motorsport at Mercedes. The 52-year-old, who owns 33.33 percent of the shares in the racing team, extended his contract, which expired at the end of 2023, by three years.
Wolff himself made the contract extension public in an interview with the British daily newspaper “The Telegraph”. The decision was made in agreement with Ineos boss Jim Ratcliffe and Ola Källenius, CEO of Mercedes-Benz Group AG. Ineos and Mercedes-Benz Group AG are equal partners.
“I think the most important thing between the three of us is that we trust each other,” Wolff shared, and immediately made it clear: “I won’t try to cling to a position that I think someone will do better than me. I make sure I have people around me who can teach me better. In the end, the three of us decided, ‘Let’s do it again’.”
Mercedes boss Toto Wolff: “Victory is the best return”
Wolff also had a declaration of war ready for the Formula 1 competitors: “At the end of the day, as a shareholder, I want to achieve the best return on investment myself. And the best return is a victory.”
Wolff, who celebrated his 52nd birthday on Friday, took over the position of head of motorsport at Mercedes from Norbert Haug on January 21, 2013.
In the same year, the Viennese native, whose fortune is estimated at 1.25 billion Swiss francs, and his business partner Rene Berger initially acquired a 30 percent stake in Mercedes GP.
From 2014 to 2020, the former racing driver was jointly responsible for the longest series of titles ever won by a Formula 1 team. The Silver Arrows were able to secure seven Drivers’ World Championship titles during this time. Lewis Hamilton, who celebrated six titles in a Mercedes, drew level with Formula 1 record champion Michael Schumacher (seven titles). In 2016, Nico Rosberg became the last German driver to be crowned F1 world champion.
The Mercedes team even won eight consecutive constructors’ world championships from 2014 to 2021.