That lap at the Nurburgring, advice from Niki Lauda, and Susie’s phone call: Toto Wolff, Mercedes F1 team principal, opens up. The Austrian has been a key figure in the management of the Silver Arrows for over a decade. Under his leadership, Stuttgart’s motorsport division has achieved an extraordinary number of successes. However, not everyone remembers his past as a driver.
Toto Wolff’s career as a corporate executive and team principal in Formula 1 has cemented his name in the annals of motorsport. The Austrian, known for his authoritative yet sometimes lighthearted demeanor, also has a fascinating history as a driver. His career intertwines with the evolution of the legendary Nordschleife circuit.
On the grueling curves of the Green Hell, Toto Wolff claimed victory at the 24 Hours of Nürburgring in 1994. Later, in 2009, he set a lap record for the GT category with a time of 7:03.28, driving a Porsche 997 GT3 RSR. His next attempt to break the seven-minute barrier would change his life forever.
Toto and Susie Wolff: The story of the Nurburgring crash
“I was friends with Niki Lauda, who had his Formula 1 crash right there,” Toto Wolff recounted on the Armchair Expert Podcast. “He told me, ‘Why are you doing this? It’s so stupid. Nobody cares what you do at the Nurburgring!’ I guess I was going through a bit of a midlife crisis!”
“It was a warm-up lap, but the car already felt strange, and the tires were wearing out. It was an amateur approach: I told myself that even though I knew the car had an issue, I’d still give it a go. On that single attempt, I gained 15 seconds. It would have been a 6:40 or 6:35.”
“The car felt odd. I kept telling myself, ‘I just need to finish the lap.’ Then I had a blowout in the most dangerous section, going 304 km/h. I hit the guardrail, flipped over, but fortunately didn’t end up in the forest. I slid for 250 meters and came to a stop. They found me lying on my back behind the guardrail, helmet still on, as if I were sleeping. I don’t remember any of it.”
“With the shock and adrenaline, I managed to get out of the car. I had a severe concussion.”
That crash, however, would be what brought Toto and his wife Susie together: “She was at a training camp with other Mercedes drivers. I was a shareholder in the touring car team, but we didn’t know each other. Word got around that Toto had a bad crash. She called me and asked if I was okay. We started talking, and it turned into a 30-minute call. And that’s how it all began…”
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