“I Thought He’s Gonna Think I’m an Idiot”: Mercedes F1 Hotshot Toto Wolff Once Revealed the One F1 Driver Who Left Him Completely Starstruck

The Mercedes boss, Toto Wolff, has been an entity that admires talent and gives it unbiased credit where it is due. A couple of years back, the Silver Arrows team principal remembered being star-struck by a hugely talented driver, who also happened to be the greatest of all time for Formula 1. Yes! We are talking about none other than the legendary Michael Schumacher!

In an interview with Sky Sports F1, the Austrian delved into a discussion regarding the future of the Silver Arrows. And as the conversation progressed, he reminisced about the time he met the legendary driver for the very first time.

Sharing his experience, he said, “I admire Michael‘s achievement so much. He has his sprint over a generation of drivers that 10 years from the early 2000’s to the end. I mean, it was the Michael Schumacher era. And I remember when I met him first, it was on a flight to Singapore and he invited me to play backgammon. I was so starstruck.”

“I was so starstruck that I lost the first two games. And I thought he’s gonna think I’m an idiot. But I just couldn’t believe that I was sitting opposite Michael, who has won 90 odd races and seven championships.”

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In the same interview, Toto Wolff also shared his thoughts on Lewis Hamilton breaking Michael Schumacher’s record in F1.

Toto Wolff shared his views on Lewis Hamilton’s rise as the greatest driver of all time

Further into the interview from 2020, Formula One pit lane reporter Natalie Pinkham pointed out that Michael Schumacher’s 91 wins seemed like a rather untouchable goal. However, she also said that with the consistent climb Hamilton has been projecting, he could break Michael’s record and this would lead a new wave of drivers.

Lewis Hamilton did go on to break Michael Schumacher’s record of most wins, with 103 victories. However, prior to his achievement, Wolff showed a lot of faith in Hamilton.

He answered the question, saying, “We don’t think about it a lot. Lewis pushes it aside a little bit. Because he would have never dreamed of achieving 91 wins. He would’ve never dreamed of having a similar career like Michael.”

“If he can do it, it’s obviously going to be overwhelming to be on the same level than the greatest driver of all time,” he concluded.

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Toto Wolff has always had Lewis Hamilton’s back from the get-go. Do you think Lewis Hamilton will emerge as a title challenger in the season of 2023? Will he break the ultimate record by winning his eighth championship?