Mercedes will be without team boss Toto Wolff at this weekend’s Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, as the Austrian has remained in the United States.

Having made the trek to Florida for the Miami Grand Prix, Wolff will miss his second race of the year as he remains Stateside for this weekend.

Toto Wolff to sit out Emilia Romagna GP

Wolff is attending the graduation ceremony of his eldest son, Benedict, one of his children from his previous marriage.

The Austrian’s absence comes weeks after his missing the Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka, while he also sat out last year’s Sao Paulo Grand Prix.

His responsibilities will be assimilated by the usual top-level staff at the circuit, with team representative and chief communications officer Bradley Lord becoming the public face of the Mercedes team for the weekend at Imola.

It’s been a positive start to the F1 2025 season for Mercedes, with the W16 proving a competitive car from the get-go and allowing George Russell to become a dark horse for this year’s championship against the dominant McLarens.

Speaking in his preview for the weekend in Italy, Wolff said, “From those first six races, we can draw the following conclusions: we have made progress from last year, with the W16 a more balanced car than its predecessor; we have scored some solid results, with four podiums in that run of races; and we have more work to do if we want to challenge for victories.

“Our focus is on making gains on that final point as we begin the European leg of the season. The team have been working hard to do that and we will be bringing several updates over the coming races.

“F1 is a relative game, though, and we know our competitors will make progress too. It will be interesting to see how that plays out on track.”

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Wolff has missed at least one race each season in recent years, having skipped the 2023 Japanese and Qatar Grands Prix as he recovered from knee surgery.

It’s become increasingly prevalent in F1 that personnel do sit out occasional races throughout a season, with the calendar having expanded to a mammoth 24 races since last year.

Such grueling schedules have resulted in some staff rotation at teams, wherever possible, although senior management figures missing races is less common.

Wolff has previously made it clear that he intends to scale down his in-person involvement at the race track over the coming years.

“We’re over the limit,” he told the Austrian broadcast ORF last year.

“People like me travel comfortably, but the mechanics who set up and dismantle the car are flying economy. You can see in people’s faces now – it can’t go on anymore.”

In 2023, Wolff told the Press Association of his intent to scale down his involvement once a clear succession path has been decided upon.

“The clear aim is to build a structure for the future and that is my sheer responsibility for the team,” he said.

“A stone could fall on my head and how does it look afterwards? That is why I would like to see myself in a few years maybe not going to 24 races, and just to 15.

“But that is many years away. I see myself in this role for a long time. I cannot imagine doing something else.”

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