Toto Wolff has dropped the firmest hint yet that he will remain as Mercedes-Benz’s motorsport chief beyond 2020, amid rumours linking him with a position at Formula 1.
Wolff has been at the helm of Mercedes’ Formula 1 team since 2013, overseeing the most successful reign of any squad in history, winning six straight Drivers’ and Constructors’ crowns.
Speculation has linked Wolff with the role of Formula 1’s CEO, should Chase Carey depart at the end of 2020, while Mercedes has yet to fully and firmly commit to the sport into 2021.
But speaking at the FIA Gala Wolff indicated that he expects to stay on in his current position through the next regulatory cycle in Formula 1.
“Me personally, my role is a little bit different and what I found out is that I enjoy the relationships within the team and the relationships to the decision-makers at Daimler,” said Wolff.
“That is a fundamental part of my wellbeing. They have really trusted us and given us all the room that we need to make this team successful, and I’m not taking it lightly to come up with the right decision for all of us.
“This is a process that is going to take a little bit of time but I don’t see any surprises actually as it stands.
“The two of us [Wolff and Lewis Hamilton] have been together for quite a while, we trust each other, we have gone through difficult times together and we have come out stronger with a better bond.
“Besides us there are many others which form part of that inner circle within the team. So of course we talk all the time where we see the team going and Lewis’ career going.”
Wolff added that speculation over his future, and that of lead driver Hamilton, is expected given their success and the uncertainty for 2021.
“In terms of the silly season it’s normal, you guys [the media] drop us little grenades, sometimes we pick them up and they explode in our hand and it’s part of the narrative.
“It’s good that over the winter these talks happen, but at the same time the two of us talk all the time about it.
“There have never been any surprises, when things come out in the press it was weeks or months that we knew about each other what our thinking was. It’s part of Formula 1 I guess.”
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