Mercedes’ team principal, Toto Wolff is unlike any other on the grid. The Austrian started as a stakeholder and is now a part owner and CEO while also managing the team, besides being a billionaire. The wealth of experience he’s collected over the years as a young entrepreneur until now is priceless and can easily be compiled in a book. This is exactly what he was asked about on the Performance People podcast. However, Wolff stated he’s not writing a memoir until 80.
Wolff explained the reason behind his wait and said, “No, I had tons of people asking about writing, publicists writing biographies, autobiographies about management style, et cetera, et cetera.”
“That is really bad karma because you could be writing this book about how being successful and then next year around and the year after, and the year after you’re not. So it has no value. Do it when I’m 80.“, he added.
After suffering the 2021 championship heartbreak and the embarrassment of the next two seasons, Wolff has become wiser. He’s understood that change is imminent and omnipresent in all aspects of life, including F1. So, despite enjoying eight consecutive years of dominance and becoming one of the most successful team principals in the sport’s history, he’s reserving his learnings.
The Mercedes boss has learned the hard way that nobody stays on top. The Silver Arrows have only just recovered from their slump in the ground effect regulations era, but still cannot breathe easy.
2026 will bring another major overhaul which will be a reset for the entire sport. So, with F1 testing and teaching new lessons every few years, Wolff wants to wait before he pens down his wisdom. Additionally, the 52-year-old might be able to add a chapter on perseverance given how the Brackley outfit is progressing.
Mercedes is adding more chapters to Wolff’s story
No one could’ve predicted Mercedes’ drastic downfall after being on top of the F1 world for so long. The team back in Brackley botched their 2022 challenger with their poor interpretation of the new regulations. The troubled base for the car resulted in continued subpar performances until recently. In 2024, the W15’s Monaco GP front wing upgrade changed everything for them.
Since then they’ve collected multiple podiums and three wins. This turnaround has been a testament to their consistency, commitment, and resilience. Mercedes put themselves in a competitive position for the first time in two and a half seasons. Now, the Brackley outfit will surely build on this momentum to continue growing and closing the gap to the front.
With this continued effort, Mercedes would be capable of challenging for a championship again in 2025. However, now the team has lost its record champion, Lewis Hamilton to rivals Ferrari.
Amid that, Wolff has entrusted the team’s future to a teenager in Kimi Antonelli. Such a massive step will surely teach the Austrian boss a lot of new lessons — which could be good or bad, depending on how well Antonelli performs.
