“They've experienced everything”: Toto Wolff shares his insight on sim-racing culture among the younger generation

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff listed the advantages of sim racing, citing the example of his seven-year-old son, Jack. He revealed that his son has experienced every aspect of racing through practice in virtual simulators.

The sport of F1 is evolving and simulator racing is also slowly gaining steam. Last year, Max Verstappen featured in a 24-sim race before the Hungarian Grand Prix. Though he received criticism for pulling off an all-nighter, the four-time world champion has always been a vocal advocate of virtual racing.

Meanwhile, Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff recently shared his insights on the topic and used the example of his seven-year-old son to list the benefits of sim racing.

Talking to Auto Motor und Sport, Wolff said:

"My son is seven years old. He has a kart simulator at home. He races against others online. He sometimes drives 20 five-minute kart races in a row. It's all there, from the start to the crash. They've experienced everything. The graphics are now so good, and young people's minds work differently. Young people no longer differentiate between reality and the virtual world."

Wolff also narrated an incident when his son drove a sim race on a particular track and memorized everything. Moreover, when Jack drove an actual kart on the same track, he was the fastest and told his dad that he knew the track from before.

Such incidents make the Mercedes team principal believe that simulator racing helps shape the minds of younger talents.

Meanwhile, Toto Wolff is set to lead Mercedes into a crucial phase in 2025. The team has lost seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton to rival team Scuderia Ferrari and will be tasked to accommodate an 18-year-old rookie in Andrea Kimi Antonelli.

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Toto Wolff claims Mercedes barely avoided a cost cap breach in 2024

Toto Wolff (Image Source: Getty)

Mercedes had a difficult year in 2024. The car had minimal improvements compared to 2023, and due to cost cap regulations, the team had to hold back their upgrades.

Moreover, team principal Toto Wolff revealed that his team came very close to breaching the cost cap. Speaking to Auto Motor und Sport, he said, via Motorsport Week:

"Very close [on cost cap breach]. You can’t build up a big nest egg. It’s more the case that you overshoot at the beginning of the year and then start to save. At the end of the year, we had to do without some upgrades in aerodynamics and mechanics because there was simply no money left to produce the corresponding parts."

However, Wolff is confident that Mercedes has avoided a breach and will escape penalties from the FIA. The cost cap was first introduced by FIA in 2021, and so far only Red Bull has been sanctioned for violating the terms.