The season opener in Bahrain continued Mercedes and Lewis Hamilton‘s misery from last year. After staying non-competitive throughout 2022, the Silver Arrows further fell down the pecking order as Aston Martin turned up with a banger of a performance. Amidst it all was Hamilton’s own rival from the yesteryears, Fernando Alonso, who, against all odds, secured a podium finish. However, despite a humiliating loss, Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff made a fortune from Aston Martin’s newfound success.

To put it bluntly, Mercedes’ performance was nowhere near the stature that they hold in F1. It was only last year that Red Bull dethroned them from the constructors’ championship. Instead of coming back stronger, the Brackley outfit seems done and dusted considering their performance in Bahrain. In fact, Toto himself dubbed the race as one of the worst days in his racing career. However, being an investor in Aston Martin, the Austrian benefited from the sudden rise in their share price.

As per Joe Pompliano, after Alonso’s P3 finish on Sunday, Aston Martin saw its share price shoot up by 15%. That makes Lawrence Stroll’s team’s market cap rise up by $300 million in a span of just 24 hours. Toto, who holds a 1% stake in the team, naturally saw his own share’s worth rise by $3 million.

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It is not just Wolff who has made a fortune after the Silverstone-based team’s mercurial rise, though. Toto purchased Aston Martin’s shares in 2020. However, Mercedes owner Daimler has held a significant share in Aston Martin since 2013.

When Toto Wolff was accused of insider trading in Aston Martin shares

The proximity between Aston Martin and Mercedes has never been a secret. While Daimler and Wolff own shares in the car manufacturing company, the British car manufacturer appointed Tobias Moers, Mercedes AMG’s former head, as their chief executive.

Moers and Mercedes later signed a technology-sharing partnership after which Toto’s shares’ worth shot up by 60%. However, German markets watchdog, BaFin cleared him of any wrongdoing and later, the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority cleared him as well. No evidence of alleged insider trading was found and therefore, the authorities never charged Wolff.

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The first race did not go as per Mercedes’ expectations. Toto will now have to make sure that their ship sails in the right direction because a champion driver like Lewis Hamilton can certainly not take another year of humiliation very well. Moreover, the pressure from fans is building up as well.