Toto Wolff on retirement: “I think about Ron Dennis or Frank Williams…”

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Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff says “we’ve seen situations when a team principal is no more at his best”, but he thinks he can still “contribute to the team in my area of expertise”.

With Mercedes struggling for the past two years, some observers have started to question whether long-time team boss Toto Wolff is the right person to lead the team into the future.

The Austrian, however, has no doubts about his ability to get Mercedes back into the fight.

“I still think that I can contribute to the team in my area of expertise,” Wolff said.

“Unfortunately, I haven’t found someone who I would say has more energy, more drive, more skill, all of these factors, that I believe are important to be the team principal and CEO.”

Toto added he is aware that there will come a time when he is no longer the best person for the job, and he does not intend to hold onto his position past that point.

“We’ve seen situations when a team principal is no more at his best. I think about Ron Dennis or Frank Williams – you don’t want to hold on to it.

“In 2012, I was eager to be the team principal of Williams, and we did it together. My title was the executive director. I forced it, in a way, because I said to Frank: ‘I want to run this and I respect you.’


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“I feel I will never be in that situation. I’m always on the lookout of what is the organisational structure of the future. Maybe it’s different. Maybe there’s no team principal or CEO.

“We are a vast organisation. As the head of Mercedes-Benz Motorsport, I’m responsible for two-and-a-half-thousand people – all of the engine side, the chassis side, and all of the other programmes in Mercedes.”

The Austrian also added he will not decide to step away based on the team’s performance at the time – he will step away when “the moment is right”, regardless of performance.

“I’m an owner of the team, so I look at it with the perspective of the next 20 years. I would like to be fighting for championships.

“Whenever I feel the moment is right that we change the leadership, I wouldn’t mind whether it’s good or bad.

“I think I’m doing this together with many other people. This is, for me, not like being a coach or manager or trainer in saying, ‘I want to go out on a high and leave a legacy’, this is my thinking: ‘I’m not going anywhere.’

“I hope that we’re winning many, many more, but I don’t feel any entitlement,” Wolff concluded.

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