Wolff revealed new deal ‘to shut down chatter about being a part-time player’

Wolff has penned a fresh three-year deal to remain as team principal of Mercedes, The Telegraph confirmed.

He also remains the owner of 33% of the F1 team so there is an additional reason for him clarifying his future, Slater insists.

The Sky Sports F1 reporter agreed that Wolff made public his new deal to “stave off all the rumours that were going around that he was leaving”.

Slater added: “Toto has said repeatedly in public that ‘I am in it for life as the co-owner of the team’.

“He has a one-third share in the Mercedes Formula 1 team. People know his co-owner is Sir Jim Ratcliffe who now has a big stake in Manchester United.

“So, despite that, there had been some discussion about whether he planned to leave his day-to-day role as team principal.

“He has talked on occasion of maybe wanting to cut down on the amount of races that he attends.

“He’s a billionaire, he has got a young family as well. He has won eight constructors’ championships with Mercedes. As he put it, he was always likely to be bored out of the job having achieved everything that he set out to achieve, rather than being burned out or potentially ousted.

“Some people were suggesting that maybe he didn’t get on with Daimler, the one-third ownership. Maybe there was some friction there? I understand that is completely without foundation.

“He and Jim Ratcliffe are close, in terms of their business dealings. They have a good personal relationship. Given they own two-thirds of the team, that cements Toto’s position.

“The reason he has come out? It’s not a surprise that he has signed this deal. What is significant is that he has made it public, he has committed as team principal for the next three years, to shut down any chatter about him maybe being a part-time player or potentially leaving.

“That gives the whole team extra confidence.”

Mercedes have endured two awful seasons since Lewis Hamilton was denied an all-time record eighth F1 championship at the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

Max Verstappen and Red Bull have dominated ever since.

Wolff’s team will unveil their W15 challenger on February 14, hoping to finally return to the championship fight against Red Bull this season.