Toto Wolff has revealed that he has signed a multi-year contract extension to remain as the Team Principal of the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
Having initially ventured into F1 with the Williams squad in 2009, Wolff departed to take up the position of Executive Director within Mercedes at the start of 2013.
The Austrian has been at the helm of the German marque ever since, guiding the side to eight consecutive Constructors’ Championships between 2014 and 2021.
However, Mercedes has been unable to replicate that success upon F1’s switch to ground effect aerodynamics in 2022, logging only one win over the past two seasons.
But speaking to the Telegraph, Wolff, who owns one-third of the team along with Daimler and INEOS, has confirmed he will continue to front Mercedes’ F1 operation.
Wolff disclosed that productive discussions with INEOS boss Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Mercedes Chairman Ola Källenius had concluded with the three parties all aligned.
“I think the most important thing between the three of us is that we trust each other,” Wolff asserted.
“At the end of the day, as a shareholder myself, I want the best return on investment. And the best return on investment is winning.
“I’m not going to try to hang on to a position that I think somebody is going to do better than me.
“I make sure that I have people around who can tell me otherwise. In the end the three of us decided: ‘Let’s do it again’.”
Mercedes endured its only winless campaign under Wolff’s tenure to date last season while it also marked the first time one of its drivers hadn’t taken a victory since 2011.
However, Wolff insists that he still remains energised on the challenge ahead of attempting to reinstate Mercedes at the pinnacle of the sport during the upcoming years.
“I’m part of this team in various functions,” he continued. “I’m a co-shareholder. I’m on the board. These are things which will not change whatever executive, or non-executive, role I have.
“But I feel good. The risk for me is always more bore-out than burnout. And that’s why I embrace the challenges we have today, even though they sometimes feel very, very difficult to manage.”
Wolff also denied that there are performance-related clauses inserted into his new deal, arguing: “You either trust each other or you don’t. And we are aligned as shareholders.”
The confirmation that Wolff has extended comes after Mercedes announced last August that Lewis Hamilton and George Russell would form the team’s line-up through 2025.
The Brackley-based squad is pressing ahead with a revised car concept for 2024 as it bids to catch the dominant Red Bull squad, who prevailed in 21 out of 22 races last year.
Mercedes established this morning that the launch of its new challenger, the W15, will be unveiled at Silverstone on 14 February via a broadcast on the team’s social channels.
