MERCEDES boss Toto Wolff admits his contract renegotiations with Mercedes have stalled due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The news will be a blow to Lewis Hamilton, who is also waiting to agree terms over his new deal.
Toto Wolff (left) and Lewis Hamilton’s futures at Mercedes appear inextricably linkedCredit: Getty Images – Getty
Wolff and Hamilton have contracts with Mercedes that run until December 31 and both were due to open up negotiations with Stuttgart chiefs earlier this year.
However, the global lockdown due to the deadly virus means those talks have now ceased, yet Wolff says that he remains as boss of the Brackley-based team.
He said: “In most stories that could be read about it, people added up one plus one and turned it into three.
“What is my current status? My participation in Mercedes is solid, my contract runs until the end of 2020, and we are still in good discussions about what we want to do together.
“We are discussing but all of this has been pushed into the background by the coronavirus. We all have bigger problems to solve now – human problems in our companies.”
Questions about Wolff’s future were raised after businessman Lawrence Stroll bought the former Force India team, plus a controlling stake in Aston Martin.
I’m not going to become CEO of Aston Martin, and I’m not going to make a strategic investment there either.”
Toto Wolff
Stroll will rebrand the F1 team as Aston Martin for 2021 and there is some speculation that Wolff, himself a successful businessman, could join forces with the Canadian tycoon.
But the Austrian claims he will not be joining the project and says the link has only come about because he is friends with Stroll, who also buys Mercedes parts for his team.
He added: “I’m not going to become CEO of Aston Martin, and I’m not going to make a strategic investment there either.
“Stroll and his team are a big customer of our racing team. They purchase engines, gearboxes and suspension parts from Mercedes.
“In addition, Lawrence has been a good friend of mine for many years – regardless of our business relationships.
“I’m in the eighth year now [at Mercedes]. I love sports and this team. However, I am somewhat surprised by the turn of events over the winter and by the behaviour of individual people.
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“Of course, this also has to do with my decision on what to do in 2020 and beyond.
“But I am and will remain the head of Mercedes Motorsport and F1 boss, and nothing will change in the short-term.”
F1 teams are now on an enforced two-week shutdown with a view to clearing the way for a jam-packed calendar when the racing gets going again.
However, Wolff expects that factory closure to be extended as the UK copes with the coronavirus crisis.
And he says their engine plant at Brixworth has switched to producing ventilators for the NHS.
⚠️ Read our coronavirus in sport live blog for the latest news & updates
He added: “The shutdown is fixed for three weeks, and then it will probably be extended for another three weeks.
“We have switched the engine factory to the production of special units to keep people from needing ventilation in the intensive care unit.
“It usually takes half a year to develop something like that, but we did it in 100 hours. Now we are ramping up production to 10,000 units a week.”
Lewis Hamilton urges people to wash their hands to avoid catching contagious coronavirus
Source: Motorsport - thesun.co.uk
