Mercedes team principal and CEO Toto Wolff, along with his wife and F1 Academy managing director Susie Wolff, are currently under investigation by the FIA (Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile), the governing body of motorsports responsible for sanctioning Formula 1.
This inquiry is centered on concerns related to a potential conflict of interest within the married couple, both of whom hold significant positions in the sport. They have been married since 2011 and have one son, Jack, born in 2017.
Toto served as the executive director for the Williams F1 team starting in 2009 before transitioning to a similar role at Mercedes in 2013.
Meanwhile, Susie Wolff, a former race driver, took on a leadership position at the Venturi Racing team in Formula E after she retired from on-track racing in 2015. In March 2023, she assumed the role of managing director for the all-female racing series, F1 Academy.
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FIA Opens Investigation on Susie and Toto Wolff
The FIA has investigated the couple following reported concerns raised by rival F1 team principals.
The inquiry focuses on whether Toto Wolff and Susie Wolff have been sharing confidential information with Formula One Management (FOM).
Susie Wolff holds a position within F1 as the managing director of its all-female series, F1 Academy, and directly reports to F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali.
According to a report in BusinessF1 magazine, the suggestion is that a comment made by Toto in a recent team principal meeting, which appeared to be based on information that could only have come from Formula One Management, served as the catalyst for other team bosses to register their complaints.
The FIA later said they are "aware of media speculation centered on the allegation of information of a confidential nature being passed to an F1 team principal from a member of FOM personnel."
Susie Wolff Responds to Allegations
Susie expressed her strong feelings about the situation in a statement posted on her social media accounts, saying she was deeply insulted but not surprised.
"It is disheartening that my integrity is being called into question in such a manner, especially when it seems to be rooted in intimidatory and misogynistic behaviour, and focused on my marital status rather than my abilities," the 41-year-old executive wrote.
Mercedes also issued a similar statement, refuting the accusations and emphasizing that the allegations wrongly impinge on the integrity and compliance of their team principal.
Formula 1 Teams Deny Involvement
In a surprising turn of events, all of the remaining nine Formula 1 teams issued nearly identical statements on Wednesday, December 6, denying that they had complained to the governing body FIA about an alleged conflict of interest involving the Wolffs.
"We, like others, were quite surprised by the (FIA) statement, but it certainly wasn't instigated or required or set off by Red Bull," Red Bull Racing team principal and CEO Christian Horner stated.
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