Toto Wolff working to avoid burnout at Mercedes during lengthy Formula 1 season in 2023
- Planet Sport writer
- 16 January 2023
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff says he will introduce a hard cap on how many Formula 1 races each staff member is allowed to attend in 2023 to try to avoid burnout.
There are already record 23 races set for the 2023 Formula 1 season with a 24th yet to be confirmed after the China Grand Prix was cancelled.
Wolff and some other top executives at Mercedes missed a couple of races in 2022, which Wolff feels was necessary to keep them all at the top of their game and it is something he will look to extend to the rest of the team this year.
"We need to protect ourselves, and that's not only me but the core of the racing team, in order to protect performance," said Wolff told GPfans.
"I can push through, each of us can push through and do 24 races, some of us easier than others because we travel better.
"For most of our mechanics, engineers, and marketing people, the travelling is much more stressful, so therefore, there needs to be some sort of rotation.
"What I will do is put in a hard stop as to how many races each and everyone can do, and you can't go above it because we need to be protected from ourselves."
"It's something we need to discuss in the team, what is the right amount, what is best for the team.
"There are going to be more weekends for others and less for some, so it's a work in progress."
"For Japan, the experiment was one I didn't like at all because you are sitting in the dark at home with the whole set-up, you can't see people, you're out of sync with real life at home so I'd rather travel," assessed Wolff.
"But this experiment is something that helps me to regenerate.
"In my office in my apartment, I have the full set-up - intercom, all the data channels, and I have the live feed where I can interact with the team as if I was there.
"Is it the same quality? Definitely not, because I am not looking into people's eyes. I don't see the cars.
"There was a situation where I asked Bradley [Lord, head of communications] and James [Vowles, chief strategist and new Williams team principal] why we were delaying to exit, and there was work on the rear wing being done, so I didn't see that.
"And it's definitely not the same quality of human interaction as when I'm there."
