Formula 1 is midway through one of the most exciting seasons in recent memory on the track. But off the track, mental health awareness is having a moment.
Drivers and teams alike have opened up about their mental health struggles, from Lando Norris talking about his journey ahead of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix to Alpine announcing a mental health partnership with JAAQ.
The latest figure in the sport to address the issue? Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff. Speaking with Sky Sports F1 analyst Martin Brundle the Silver Arrows boss opened up about his mental health struggles, and how he turned the issue around by seeking help.
“I have struggled so badly with these things, for months not being able to have a clear thought but I came to the realisation that it comes with a lot of advantages,” Wolff told Sky Sports F1’s Martin Brundle.
“I call it a superpower. This is what I want to give people that have mental health issues as a hope. I was thinking when I was really bad at times, ‘that person hasn’t got what I have’, and that’s why that person can be more successful.
“I generally have a feeling for what people need in order to perform,” continued Wolff. “That’s why I speak openly about it. That’s why us in F1, laughing at the camera, being so cold, successful, we have struggles. It’s not every day we wake up and say what a great life we have.”
Wolff noted that seeking help, including speaking with a psychologist, has been a huge boost in his life.
“I always seek help. I always asked questions from a very early age. Some of the days were so bad that I found my way to a psychologist,” said the Mercedes boss.
“There’s not a single treatment in a way that I tried from speaking to psychologists, cognitive behavioral therapy because I like to just optimize on how can I solve the problem quickly. I have done probably more than 300 or 350 hours of talking.
“This stress is my comfort zone. Trying to solve problems. Never to give up, even if you have been beaten down a hundred times. In a way I’m made for these tougher days.”
Mercedes has seen brighter days in recent weeks. The Silver Arrows have won three of the last four races, pulling closer to third-place Ferrari in the F1 Constructors’ Championship. Their pursuit of the teams ahead of them in the standings, as well as the impending decision regarding who will replace Lewis Hamilton ahead of his move to Ferrari, will be dominant themes of the second half of the season.
But Wolff’s willingness to speak up about his mental health struggles, along with similar moves from other teams and figures in the sport, is perhaps a much bigger story. The more the stigma is removed around seeking help, the better everyone will be, and Wolff’s willingness to talk about this subject is another step in that direction.
