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Toto Wolff says former Mercedes High Performance Powertrains boss Andy Cowell told him he would have stayed with the team if he wanted to remain in Formula 1.
With Red Bull pouching Mercedes HPP employees, many are questioning if the team’s former engine plant boss Andy Cowell is next on the list.
Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff says this move is not in the cards.
“I talk to Andy regularly,” the Austrian said.
“He just wants to do something different, not only be known for his work in Formula 1.
“Andy has exciting ideas about technology and sustainability and he also said: ‘If I wanted to continue in Formula 1, I would have stayed with Mercedes’.”
Wolff says Mercedes’ employees that have agreed to join Red Bull Powertrains, will in no way destabilize his team.
“We have 900 people there working on the F1 power units. It’s a huge organisation and losing 10 or 15 or more will not change the collective strength of the group.
“In a way, it’s almost like a natural selection – people stepping out of the way for young ones to move up, and we see it as a big opportunity.
“There is no destabilisation whatsoever because the group is so big. Performance comes from the power of the group and not individuals.”
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The Austrian is also very pleased with the loyalty most Mercedes’ employees have shown.
“It’s really good to see the really loyal ones who have been approached are staying – it is an overwhelmingly larger number than the ones who have been lured away.
“Seeing that loyalty and integrity, in a way, confirms the values of this group.
“At the end of the day there were some really good people that were approached with lottery number paycheques, and they haven’t even thought about it twice.
“They stayed because they liked the environment, for what we stand for, and it’s a good environment.
“We’ve proven it’s a good environment to work and prosper, and that is something that makes me very proud of the organisation in Brixworth,” concluded Wolff.
