Toto Wolff

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Toto Wolff
ÖAMTC Welt des Motorsports 2016-9 (cropped).jpg
Wolff in 2016
Born
Torger Christian Wolff

(1972-01-12) 12 January 1972 (age 49)
Vienna, Austria
OccupationTeam principal & CEO of the Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team
Height1.96 m (6 ft 5 in)
PredecessorNorbert Haug
Spouse(s)
​
(m. 2011)​
Children3

Torger Christian "Toto" Wolff[2] (born 12 January 1972) is an Austrian motorsport executive, investor and former racing driver. He holds a 33%[3] stake in the Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team and is Team Principal and CEO of the team.

Wolff began his motorsport career in the Austrian Formula Ford Championship and the German Formula Ford Series. He won his category in the 1994 24 Hours Nürburgring and later competed in the FIA GT Championship and Italian GT Championship. As an investor, Wolff founded Marchfifteen in 1998 and Marchsixteen Investments in 2004, initially focusing on Internet and technology companies. He specialises in strategic investments in medium-sized industrial and listed companies, which have included Williams F1 and German HWA AG.

Early life[]

Wolff was born on 12 January 1972 in Vienna[2] to a Polish mother and a Romanian father.[4] His mother was a physician. He grew up in the city[5] and was educated in a French school there, despite not coming from a wealthy family. Wolff's father was diagnosed with brain cancer when he was eight years old. His parents separated following his father's diagnosis. His father died of the disease during Wolff's adolescence.[6]

Motorsport[]

Wolff started his motorsport career in 1992 in the Austrian Formula Ford Championship, driving in Austrian and German Formula Ford in 1993 and 1994. In 1994, he won the 24 Hours Nürburgring in his category. In 2002 Wolff finished in sixth place in the N-GT category in the FIA GT Championship and won one race. He switched to the Italian GT Championship in 2003, winning a race in 2004 with , while also teaming with Karl Wendlinger in the FIA GT Championship.[7] Wolff was runner up in the Austrian Rally Championship in 2006, and winner of the 2006 Dubai 24 Hour.[8] Wolff has also served as an instructor at the Walter Lechner Racing School and in 2009 became a lap-record holder on the Nürburgring Nordschleife in a Porsche RSR.[9] Wolff also has overall responsibility for the Mercedes EQ Formula E Team.[citation needed]

Formula One[]

In 2009, Wolff bought a share of the Williams Formula One Team and joined the board of directors.[10] In 2012, he was named executive director of Williams F1[11] and the team took its last race win to date at that year's Spanish Grand Prix with Pastor Maldonado.

In January 2013, Wolff left Williams F1 to become an executive director of the Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula One Team,[12] with his business partner Rene Berger becoming non-executive director. In addition to joining the team as managing partner,[13] he also acquired 30% of Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix Ltd, with a further 10% held by Niki Lauda and 60% by the parent company.

Wolff took over the co-ordination of all Mercedes-Benz motorsport activities, a responsibility previously held by Norbert Haug. In 2014, Wolff sold two-thirds of his Williams shares to American businessman Brad Hollinger.[14] On 9 March 2016, Wolff sold his remaining shares in the Williams team.

As co-owner of both WilliamsF1 (where wife Susie worked as a test driver until November 2015) and Mercedes Grand Prix, Wolff celebrated numerous podiums and successes for both teams, such as a 1–2–3–4 finish at Spielberg, Austria in his 'home race', as well as at Monza, Italy, in both Qualifying and Race classifications.

In 2020, Mercedes won its record seventh consecutive double world championship. The record had previously been held by Ferrari when it won five consecutive double world championships between 2000 and 2004. Mercedes also hold the record of seven consecutive Driver's Championships from 2014 to 2020. This record was also previously held by Ferrari with five titles from 2000 to 2004. In 2020, Mercedes' record of seven consecutive Constructor's Championships surpassed that of Ferrari's six consecutive Constructor's Championships set between 1999-2004. Wolff's achievements were recognised through the presentation of a John Bolster Award from Todt at the 2018 Autosport Awards.[15] Wolff subsequently received the President's Award from Todt, along with team non-executive chairman Niki Lauda, at the 2018 FIA Prize Giving Gala held in St Petersburg, Russia.[16]

2018 proved the most successful motorsport year in the history of Mercedes-Benz. The company won both F1 titles, F2 with George Russell,[17] European F3 with Mick Schumacher,[18] all three titles in its final season of DTM competition with Gary Paffett securing the drivers' title,[19] both F1 eSports titles[20] and numerous championships in customer racing.

For 2019, Mercedes continued its run of success by securing a sixth consecutive double world championship at the Japanese GP, when the team secured the Constructors' title and only one of Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas could still become Drivers' champion. This is an unprecedented achievement in the history of the sport. As of 2019, Wolff is the only Team Principal who has won more than five consecutive double world championships.

In 2020, Mercedes has secured a seventh consecutive double world championship. This sets an all-time record of consecutive constructors' championships, ahead of the six achieved by Ferrari from 1999 to 2004. In the same season, Lewis Hamilton became the most successful driver in terms of race wins at the 2020 Portuguese GP, and secured a seventh world drivers' championship at the Turkish GP to tie the all-time record held by Michael Schumacher.

Since the introduction of the turbo-hybrid regulations in 2014, Mercedes has won 106 of 152 races under Wolff's leadership. The team has taken 113 of 152 pole positions, 72 front-row lockouts and 222 from 304 possible podium finishes. Since Wolff joined Mercedes in 2013, the team has achieved a winning percentage of 64%.[21]

Following the end of the 2020 F1 season, Wolff signed a new deal with Mercedes which would see him stay on as team principal and CEO for another 3 years.[22]

As of 2020, Toto Wolff's net worth is estimated at CHF 700 million (2020)[23]

Other ventures[]

Wolff founded investment companies Marchfifteen (1998) and Marchsixteen (2004), both of which initially focused on internet and technology company investments. Since 2003, Wolff has concentrated on strategic investments in medium-sized industrial and listed companies.[10] Investments included the German HWA AG, in which Wolff bought a 49% stake in 2006[11] listing the company on the stock exchange in 2007.[12] The company ran the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters race program for Mercedes-Benz, developing F3 engines and the Gullwing Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3 racing car.

Other investments included BRR Rallye Racing, one of the largest rally parts dealers in Europe. Wolff is also co-owner of a sports management company with former F1 driver Mika Häkkinen and was involved in the management of racing drivers such as Bruno Spengler, Alexandre Prémat and Valtteri Bottas.[24] In April 2020, Wolff acquired a 4.95% stake in Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings plc as a financial investment, which subsequently diluted to less than 1%.[25] Wolff's partnership and operational role with Mercedes were unaffected by this transaction. In June 2020, Wolff held a 5% stake in Williams F1 which was sold in the purchase of Williams by Dorilton Capital.[26] In August 2021, it was incorrectly speculated by tabloid Le Journal de Montréal that Toto Wolff and Aston Martin F1 boss Lawrence Stroll were involved in insider trading with respect to Aston Martin shares, something Wolff contradicted in comments provided to the same newspaper.[27][28] This allegation was proven to be unfounded following confirmation from respectively the BaFin in Germany[29] and the FCA in the UK[30] that they had found no evidence of wrongdoing.

Wolff is also a Director and CEO of the Mercedes EQ Formula E Team, and occasionally attends Formula E races. In August 2021, Wolff was present in Berlin as Mercedes won both the drivers’ and teams’ championships in Formula E,[31] at a race won by Venturi driver Norman Nato,[32] where Susie became the first female team principal to stand on the podium at a world championship motor race. With Venturi driver Edo Mortara finishing second in the drivers’ championships, the Wolffs led their respective teams to first and second positions in the Formula E drivers’ championship.[33]

Wolff is vice chairman of the Mary Bendet Foundation, founded in memory of a school friend who was a role model for a generation of friends. The Foundation's aims are to improve quality of life for underprivileged children.[34]

Personal life[]

Wolff lives with his second wife, the ROKiT Venturi Racing Team Principal Susie Wolff (née Stoddart) in Monaco.[35] He proposed on a boat to the airport in Venice.[36] They married in October, 2011. On 11 April 2017, Susie announced on Twitter that she had given birth to their first child the previous day.[37]

Wolff speaks fluent German, English, French, Italian, and Polish. He has two children from a previous marriage.[38]

Wolff was awarded a Honorary Doctorate from Cranfield University for his services to Motorsport in May 2021.[39]

References[]

  1. ^ handelszeitung.ch; bilanz.ch, 2019
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b Enzinger, Gerald (10 November 2010). "Der Toto-Gewinner". Wiener Post (in German). Styria Media Group. Archived from the original on 14 March 2011. Retrieved 14 December 2010.
  3. ^ "Toto Wolff, Ineos to take equal stake in Mercedes F1, Wolff stays as team boss". Crash. 18 December 2020. Retrieved 18 December 2020.
  4. ^ Silbermann, Eric (4 September 2016). "Breakfast with ... Toto Wolff". F1i.com. Retrieved 10 December 2018.
  5. ^ Maria Reyer (14 January 2017). "Die Karriere des Toto Wolff: Vom Finanzhai zum Teamchef". Toto Wolff hat in seinen 45 Lebensjahren schon viel erlebt: Über seine polnisch-rumänischen Wurzlen, gescheiterte Formel-1-Träume und sein Erfolgsgeheimnis. sport media group GmbH (Formel1.de, Haar. Retrieved 28 November 2020.
  6. ^ "Toto Wolff: Risk, Innovation, Winning | Finding Mastery". Finding Mastery. 26 April 2017. Retrieved 27 April 2017.
  7. ^ fiagt.com: Driver Biography: Toto Wolff Archived 28 July 2014 at the Wayback Machine
  8. ^ 24-series.com: Duller Motorsport wins first 24 hourrace of the Middle-East
  9. ^ Hinrichs, Lasse (30 July 2009). "Die zehn schnellsten Nordschleifen-Runden". spiegel.de. Spiegel Online. Retrieved 3 November 2019.
  10. ^ Jump up to: a b Autosport.com: Williams sells stake in team
  11. ^ Jump up to: a b "Williams shareholder Toto Wolff becomes executive director". Retrieved 25 July 2012.
  12. ^ Jump up to: a b "F1: Mercedes AMG Formula 1 team shareholder Toto Wolff embarks on new role". F1SA. 28 January 2013. Retrieved 10 February 2013.
  13. ^ Agini, Samuel. "'Tough love' and mediation help secure Formula One dominance". Financial Times. Retrieved 27 September 2020.
  14. ^ "Mercedes boss Toto Wolff sells off shares in Williams". bbc.com. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
  15. ^ Errington, Tom. "Mercedes F1 boss Toto Wolff receives John Bolster Award". Autosport.com. Retrieved 5 December 2018.
  16. ^ "Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes receive their title trophies at the FIA Prize Giving ceremony - VIDEO | Formula 1®". www.formula1.com.
  17. ^ Duncan, Phil (24 November 2018). "Briton George Russell wins Formula Two title in Abu Dhabi". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 5 December 2018.
  18. ^ "Wolff: Mick Schumacher can become one of the greats". ESPN.com. 15 October 2018. Retrieved 5 December 2018.
  19. ^ Simmons, Marcus. "DTM Hockenheim: Gary Paffett takes title as Rene Rast wins final race". Autosport.com. Retrieved 5 December 2018.
  20. ^ "Mercedes takes the double in F1 New Balance Esports Pro Series | Formula 1®". www.formula1.com. Retrieved 5 December 2018.
  21. ^ Straw, Edd. "Why Mercedes is now F1's fifth-greatest team - F1 - Autosport Plus". Autosport.com. Retrieved 5 December 2018.
  22. ^ "Wolff to continue as Mercedes team principal for further three years, as Ineos become one-third equal shareholder of team | Formula 1®". www.formula1.com. Retrieved 21 December 2020.
  23. ^ handelszeitung.ch; bilanz.ch, 2019
  24. ^ "The new Bernie? - Paddock Magazine". www.thepaddockmagazine.com. Retrieved 27 April 2017.
  25. ^ "Announcement re: Rights Issue". otp.tools.investis.com. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
  26. ^ "Wolff repurchases stake in former team Williams". www.planetf1.com. Retrieved 8 June 2020.
  27. ^ https://www.journaldemontreal.com/2021/08/23/megatransaction-en-f1-sous-enquete
  28. ^ https://sportitnow.com/lawrence-stroll-and-toto-wolff-under-investigation-for-shady-aston-martin-transaction/
  29. ^ "German regulator BaFin rejects insider trading suspicions in Daimler shares". Reuters. 24 August 2021. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
  30. ^ "Regulators reject suspicions of insider trading in Aston Martin and Daimler shares". www.ft.com. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
  31. ^ "Berlin E-Prix: Nato wins race, de Vries takes title for Mercedes". www.autosport.com. Retrieved 9 September 2021.
  32. ^ "Berlin E-Prix: Nato wins race, de Vries takes title for Mercedes". www.autosport.com. Retrieved 9 September 2021.
  33. ^ Correspondent, Rebecca Clancy, Motor Racing. "'Paddock's power couple? We're too ordinary'". ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 9 September 2021.
  34. ^ "Mary Bendet Foundation". marybendetfoundation.com. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
  35. ^ "'Paddock's power couple? We're too ordinary'". The Times. Retrieved 28 August 2021.
  36. ^ "Toto Wolff, CEO and team principal of Mercedes Formula One, and his wife, Susie, team principal of Venturi Formula E". The Times. Retrieved 7 June 2020.
  37. ^ "Susie Wolff on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 27 April 2017.
  38. ^ says, Valentin Boboc (5 September 2016). "Half-Polish, half-Romanian and speaking 6 languages – Breakfast with Toto Wolff".
  39. ^ https://www.cranfield.ac.uk/press/news-2021/mercedes-f1s-toto-wolff-becomes-cranfield-university-honorary-graduate

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