Key details emerge about Mercedes boss Toto Wolff's availability at the F1 Japanese GP

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff will miss the upcoming 2025 Japanese Grand Prix to prioritize his workload management. In his absence, the team's chief communications officer, Bradley Lord, will take over as stand-in team principal at Suzuka.

For the third round of the 2025 F1 season, F1 will land in Suzuka, Japan, for the Japanese Grand Prix. The race is scheduled on Sunday, April 6, but the Silver Arrows will feel the absence of one key personnel.

Team principal Toto Wolff has confirmed that he will not be available at Suzuka next weekend as the Brackley-based team's chief communications officer, Bradley Lord, has been handed over the responsibility to act as a stand-in team principal.

According to Planet F1, Wolff has made a conscious choice to prioritize his workload as the F1 calendar is extending each season. When asked to confirm his availability for the Japan race, Wolff said:

"No. Bradley is the team representative, and he speaks more cleverly than me. It’s a coincidence that I’m missing that [race] again. It’s not the jet lag."

Interestingly, this is not the first time that Toto is going to skip the Japanese Grand Prix. In 2023, he was nursing a knee surgery and had to skip the event. Moreover, last season, he had confirmed his unavailability for the race in Japan. However, after Mercedes' performance saw a dramatic dip, he canceled his plans to make a last-minute appearance in Suzuka.

That being said, the Silver Arrows have relatively had a better start this season as George Russell clinched back-to-back podiums in Australia and China. Kimi Antonelli has outperformed all rookies on the grid to finish P4 and P6 in Melbourne and Shanghai, respectively.

Currently, the Brackley-based team is seated second in the constructors championship with 57 points in two races. Only McLaren is ahead of them with 78 points.

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Toto Wolff opens up on Mercedes' potential drivers lineup for 2026

Mercedes driver George Russell [L] with Kimi Antonelli [R] - Source: Getty

While Mercedes seems to have recovered from the loss of Lewis Hamilton this season, in 2026, the team will once again be tasked with restructuring their drivers lineup. George Russell's and Kimi Antonelli's contracts are expiring by the end of the year, but Toto Wolff is keen on retaining them.

Talking to Motorsport.com, Wolff said:

"It's almost an open secret that we want to keep our drivers [Russell and Antonelli] for the long term. We don't make every discussion we have with the drivers public, and that's why this is going in the direction it should be going. But such a contract is more than just giving the driver the guarantee that he will be in the car. There are conditions that you have to discuss in the interest of the team and the driver. So it is a structured process."

Toto Wolff plans to deal with this situation once the season is over. Currently, Mercedes will likely aim to capitalize on the positive start to stay competitive in the constructors championship race.