In F1, billions of dollars are flying around – in the form of salaries, costs of car construction, and the profits that realize from racing activities. And after F1’s masterstroke in the form of Netflix’s ‘Drive to Survive’, the profit numbers have considerably gone up. And such is the case for Mercedes and Toto Wolff’s net worth. Despite Lewis Hamilton struggling to get podiums and the W14’s performance worsening, Wolff has added $600 million more to his name.
The Austrian Team Principal has had the classic ‘Rags to Riches’ story. Wolff wasn’t born into a rich family and his father met with his demise when Wolff was 8. When he was 12, he was dismissed from his school because of his inability to pay fees. But that young boy never gave up. His inner entrepreneur came out in the 90s when he started selling candles for a living and made good profits out of it. That was the foundation on which one of F1’s most successful Bosses was built.
10 years ago, Wolff had bought into Mercedes and taken the role of Team Principal. As of March 2023, Wolff’s net worth reached the mighty $1 billion mark. Present day, as per Forbes, his net worth has increased by 60% to hit $1.6 billion. And it is all on the back of Mercedes’ net worth increasing because of a boom in popularity due to ‘Drive to Survive’. And because he owns 33% of the team, his value has skyrocketed too.
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What a journey this man has had! From not being able to pay school fees to being rich enough to buy a school, if he wants, he can be the face of many inspirational stories. And it’s all because of his ‘Never back down’ attitude.
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Toto Wolff Displays Persistent Attitude That Makes Him the Man He Is
Mercedes hasn’t been having the best of seasons since 2022. But they are still managing to get a podium or so in some races. In an interview ahead of the Canadian GP, he was asked how he plans to turn things around for the team. And his response was picture perfect, as one would expect from the Boss of an 8-time championship-winning team.
Wolff said, as quoted by GPblog, “I would give up every profit just to win on track which for a normal business owner may sound crazy, but it’s how very are calibrated.”
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Wolff has said that when he joined Mercedes, the team was in shambles. And he has managed to change the fate of such a team that was not competitive enough for a World Championship. And gone on to win 8 with them. That should tell you more than you need to know about the man’s personality.
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