Toto Wolf wanted to help spread the message that anyone who is depressed or suffering from a mental illness, whether successful or wealthy, should not hesitate to seek help because of social stigma.

Having often spoken out about the need for mental health in the past, Toto Wolf reiterated this in a lengthy interview he gave to The Times in London. McLaren’s Lando Norris did the same a few months ago, speaking openly about the depression caused by the unbearable pressure he put on himself to get better and better in the early stages of his career.

Going back to Wolf saying, among other things, that money is not enough to buy happiness in life – in fact, that he recognized that the old adage “when you cry, it’s better to cry in a Rolls-Royce than in a Scarab” as his mother called him.

The 50-year-old Mercedes F1 strongman, who spent a decade subjected to the unbearable pressure of the F1 championship and the enormous workload, particularly stressed: “I’ve been visiting the psychologist since 2004, I think I’ve done over 500 hours of treatment. I have suffered greatly spiritually and I am still suffering. Seeking help was a way to overcome my problems and it helped me access untapped potential.

I never had a problem with it [κοινωνικό] Stigma. Some of the most successful people are very, very sensitive, and that means they are very, very vulnerable. Without going into too much detail, you feel depressed, you feel inadequate. It all depends on how you see yourself.

There are famous people who seem to have it all, but they struggle. I think we have an obligation to let you know we’re getting help and it’s okay if you accept help. “Simon Bales and Naomi Osaka deserve credit for how they spoke about it.” adds Wolf.

The break with Lewis Hamilton

In the same interview, the Austrian first gave details about the rupture in his relationship with Lewis Hamilton in 2016 and how a five-hour late-night conversation between the two meant that Christmas in Wolf’s kitchen changed the mood, changing their relationship from professional to friendly.

It all started at the Spanish GP that year when Hamilton’s famous collision between Hamilton and Nico Rosberg in the title race won the title – as the only car to beat Mercedes. W06 was the other Mercedes that season.

It was a very delicate balance that got out of hand again at the Belgian GP at Spa when the battle between the two cost valuable points from both and the team. Wolff explained what happened next and how the climate in his relationship with Hamilton deteriorated – something that naturally deteriorated once Rosberg eventually won that year’s title.

Of that afternoon at the spa, Wolf said: “I got the feeling that they were opportunists, they put their own goals ahead of the group’s goals, they didn’t respect that a thousand people were working for them. I had to show our body that I wouldn’t allow this behavior anymore.

After the race, I asked the drivers to come to where all the engineers were gathered. I told them, ‘Look at everyone in this room, imagine everyone at home with their families and see how you make us look.’ I’ve used some harsh words that I can’t quote.

I saw the engineers look down, the drivers did the same. ‘Next time you want to throw each other off track, remember all those faces here and then you’ll think twice.’ I told them that if something like this happened again, I wouldn’t hesitate to get them out of the car.”

However, relations between the two were restored a few months later, with the Austrian explaining how: “We met at the Christmas party at my home in Oxford in December. I told him we had to decide whether we wanted to work together or not. I said to him: ‘You want to win as a driver, I want us to win as a team. “Sometimes our different goals create conflicts and we have to decide if we can handle those situations.”

We were in my kitchen. I told him and Suzy didn’t like this simulation [Βολφ, τη σύζυγό του]that sometimes Susie and I can agree on something, but I would never consider divorcing. “And it’s the same with Lewis inside,” I told him. “I don’t want a divorce. You are the best driver. I want you in our car and we want to give you the best car.

Our conversation went a long way and after four or five hours in the kitchen we found ourselves on a whole different level. What was purely an employment relationship became a personal one. He is my friend. “It doesn’t mean we don’t disagree anymore, but Lewis’ success is now the team’s success and vice versa.”concluded Toto Wolf.