‘Merc didn’t get financial recognition in new deal’

Michelle Foster
Toto Wolff

Toto Wolff

Although he signed the Concorde Agreement, Toto Wolff feels’ Mercedes run of success has not be “recognised in terms of the financial split” in the new deal.

Mercedes was one of the last teams to put pen to paper on the new Concorde Agreement, the document that governs the running of the sport from 2021 to 2025.

While the exact details of the new deal remain confidential, it does include a fairer distribution of the prize money, something the smaller teams and F1’s owners, Liberty Media, were pushing for in order to hopefully level the playing field.

Wolff, however, feels Mercedes were done in by the terms of the new deal.

Winners of the last six Drivers’ and Constructors’ Championship, the Austrian says Mercedes’ contribution to Formula 1 was given the recognition that it deserved.

“Look, it is a negotiation at the end of the day,” he told Autosport.

“I have great respect for Chase Carey and the complications in dealing with all the stakeholders. Everybody will have a different agenda and different objectives.

“On the other side, why I was outspoken was that I felt that Mercedes’ role, particularly in the last seven years, wasn’t maybe recognised in the way I would have wished for in terms of the financial split.

“But on the other side, I think he tried hard to create a better show, to balance the prize fund distribution better, and I think he achieved it.

“Obviously I would have wished a better situation for Mercedes but it is what it is.

“In the final part of the negotiations we agreed on some compromises that found their way into the agreement, and with every negotiation, at the end of the day if both stand up at the table and are not quite satisfied it’s probably a good outcome.”

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Toto Wolff

Wolff’s comments about Mercedes not getting what he feels they deserve is somewhat ironic given that earlier in the month he complained about rivals teams pulling for their own “little deals outside”.

“I’ve been pretty vocal after the meetings that we had within the team to say this is what we need and this are the clarifications we need in order to move forward but I’ve changed my opinion in Silverstone for exact reason I told you before,” he said earlier this month.

“I don’t think that the teams will ever be united, everybody’s tried to achieve some little deals outside, there’s a blame culture in the media so we’ve decided to move forward with Liberty.

“I’ve had some very constructive discussions with Chase over the last weekend and most of the clarifications that we wanted to achieve have been discussed and I feel that we are in a good point to sign the Concorde Agreement and move on.”

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