Serious allegations against Wolff trigger investigation
Toto Wolff is the boss of the Mercedes Formula 1 team, Susie Wolff runs the F1 Academy racing series, which prepares women for Formula 1. The couple are now the focus of allegations that they have passed on secret information. The FIA is investigating.
Investigations into Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff and his wife Susie on suspicion of betraying secrets are causing unrest in Formula 1. In a strongly worded statement, the racing team rejected the accusations as unfounded and attacked the FIA for not informing Mercedes of the investigation in advance. The FIA had previously announced an investigation into media reports that confidential information had been leaked to a Formula 1 team boss by an employee of the rights holder.
The background to this is a report by a specialist portal about an alleged conflict of interest involving Wolff and his wife, about which other Formula 1 officials are said to have complained to FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem. According to the report, Susie Wolff, as Managing Director of the Formula 1 Academy, is said to have access to confidential knowledge from the top of the racing series and allegedly shared this with her husband. In return, Toto Wolff could have informed his wife about discussions between the team bosses, so that this information in turn reached the rights holder.
"We note the general statement issued by the FIA this evening in response to unsubstantiated allegations made by a single media outlet and the unofficial briefing associated with the Mercedes-AMG F1 team principal," Mercedes said. The former world champion team added: "The team has not received any communication from the FIA compliance department on this matter and it was very surprising to learn of the investigation through a media statement. We strongly reject the allegation in the statement and the associated media coverage which wrongly attacks the integrity and compliance of our team principal."
Mercedes, runners-up in last season's championship, now expects the FIA compliance department to provide "full, prompt and transparent correspondence on this investigation and its content".
Susie Wolff is "unfortunately not surprised"
The trigger is said to have been a statement made by Toto Wolff in a meeting of the team bosses, in which he is said to have referred to content that could only have come from FOM circles. As Academy boss, Susie Wolff reports directly to Formula 1 boss Stefano Domenicali - which is why some team bosses now apparently fear that their confidential discussions could be leaked to the rights holder and that Wolff could gain a knowledge advantage at the same time, according to consistent reports.
FOM stated that it was "confident that no member of our team has passed on unauthorized information to a team boss". In addition, FOM also expressed irritation at the actions of the world governing body: "We note the public statement made by the FIA this evening, which was not communicated to us in advance. We have full confidence that the allegations are false and we have robust processes and procedures in place to ensure the separation of information and responsibilities in the event of a potential conflict of interest."
Susie Wolff wrote on Instagram that she felt "deeply offended but unfortunately not surprised" by the allegations, which she rejects "in the strongest possible terms". She described it as "disheartening that my integrity is being questioned in this way". The former racing driver suspects that the accusations are an attempt at intimidation and misogyny.
51-year-old Toto Wolff has been Team Principal at Mercedes since 2013 and is also co-owner of the racing team. The Austrian and Scot Susie Wolff have been married since 2011. The 41-year-old was most recently also team principal at the Venturi Formula E team for several years.
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The investigation into Toto Wolff and Susie Wolff, both associated with Mercedes AMG in Formula 1, has placed a cloud over the motorsport world. Despite the allegations, Mercedes AMG strongly denies any wrongdoing, expressing disappointment in the FIA's handling of the matter.
The controversy surrounding Susie Wolff, managing director of the Formula 1 Academy, stems from accusations of leaking confidential information to her husband, Toto Wolff, who is the team principal of Mercedes AMG in Formula 1. Susie Wolff, in a response to the allegations, described the situation as a misogynistic attempt at intimidation and strongly rejected the claims.
Source: www.ntv.de
