Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team Principal Toto Wolff has just become a billionaire. The Austrian businessman has hit the one-million-dollar mark according to Forbes’ latest sporting ranking.
The 51-year old thus joins names like sports legends LeBron James and Tiger Woods. He is reportedly worth 1.5 billion dollars.
Toto Wolff has been a principal of Mercedes-AMG Petronas since 2013, when he made the move from Williams, the team that opened the door of Formula 1 for the investor back in 2009. In 2016, he sold his remaining stake in Williams. He has also been investing in Aston Martin Lagonda and holds a 0.95%% stake in the company as a private investor.
A former racing driver, Wolff though ticked a record at the Nurburgring in a 460-PS (454-HP) Porsche 911 RSR. He managed to beat the lap record of 7:07.07 on the first lap by almost 4 seconds (7:03.28). But wanted to smash the one that Niki Lauda had been holding since the 1970s: 6:58. But he ended up crashing at the notorious Fuchsrohre at 167 mph (269 km/h). It took him months to regain smell and taste, as the sudden deceleration affected various nerves.
“It was the most stupid suicide mission that I have ever heard of in my whole life,” Niki Lauda said when he heard his friend was in the hospital.
On a more positive note, Wolff won 1,000 Miles of Interlagos in 2004 and the first-ever Dubai 24-Hour Race in 2006.
He owns a third of Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix Ltd. With his current team, he clocked eight constructors’ titles and seven drivers’ titles. He is also the founder of investment companies Marchfifteen (1998) and Marchsixteen (2004). He is also an investor of German HWA AG and BRR Rallye Racing and co-owner of a sports management company with former F1 driver Mikka Hakkinen.
According to Forbes, Toto Wolff’s success is also the effect of Netflix’s Drive to Survive docuseries.
