Susie Wolff

MBE
Wolff in 2022
Born
Suzanne Stoddart

(1982-12-06) 6 December 1982
Oban, Scotland
Education
Spouse
​
(m. 2011)​
Children1
DTM
Years active2006–2012
TeamsMücke Motorsport, Persson Motorsport
Car number24
Starts73
Wins0
Poles0
Fastest laps0
Best finish13th in 2010
Previous series
2005
2002–04		British F3
British Formula Renault
Wolff (white) battling with Maro Engel, Ralf Schumacher and Katherine Legge at Hockenheim in 2008
Wolff driving for Mercedes-Benz (Mücke Motorsport) in the 2006 Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters season
Wolff in 2007
Wolff driving the Williams Renault at the Young Drivers' Test at Silverstone on 19 July 2013. She posted the ninth-quickest time of the day, 1m35.093s, after completing 89 laps.
Wolff testing the Williams FW36 at Silverstone during free practice.

Suzanne Wolff[1] MBE (née Stoddart; born 6 December 1982) is a Scottish former professional racing driver and current managing director of F1 Academy.

Wolff started in karting, before graduating to Formula Renault and Formula Three, then moving to the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters (DTM) to compete for Mercedes-Benz. In 2012, she was signed by Williams in Formula One[2] to work as a development driver. At the 2014 British Grand Prix at Silverstone she became the first woman to take part in a Formula One race weekend in 22 years, by participating in practice.[3] On 4 November 2015, Wolff announced her retirement from motorsport, last competing at the Race of Champions held at the end of November. In 2016, Wolff joined Channel 4 in the UK to be an analyst for their Formula One coverage.

In 2018, she joined Venturi Racing in Formula E as Team Principal.[4] In 2021, she was promoted to the role of CEO.[5] In August 2022 following the Season 8 finale in South Korea, she announced her departure from Venturi and Formula E.[6]

Personal life

Her parents, John and Sally Stoddart, owned a motorcycle dealership in Oban and her father raced bikes competitively.[7] They met when her mother bought her first motorbike from her father's shop. Wolff has an older brother David, 18 months her senior.

As toddlers, she and her brother were put on skis and bikes by her parents, with the open spaces around Oban being suited to biking and go-karting. She realised the potential she had to be a racing driver when taken to watch her first Formula 3 race at 13.[8]

She went on to study international business at Edinburgh university, but left after a year. A week after leaving, she went to Silverstone to drive for Formula Renault.

In 2005, Wolff broke her ankle while running, which along with financial issues prevented her from competing in Formula Three.

She met her future husband Toto Wolff, who at the time was a co-owner of HWA AG,[9] while racing for Mercedes-Benz in DTM. He proposed to her on a boat in Venice after eight months of dating. They married in Capri in 2011.[10] In 2017, she gave birth to their son, Jack.[11] She currently lives in Monaco with her husband.

Career

Early years

Wolff began competing at karting at the early age of eight, and in 1996 she was named the British Woman Kart Racing Driver of the year. In 1997, she competed in a number of different karting categories and succeeded in most. She was first in the 24hr Middle East Kart Championship, champion in both the Scottish Junior Intercontinental "A" and the Scottish Open Junior Intercontinental "A" categories and was again named British Woman Kart Racing Driver of the year.[12]

In 1998, she moved up to the British Junior Intercontinental "A" Championship and was placed 10th overall in her first season in the class. She also competed in the Federation Cup European Intercontinental "A" Championship and placed 11th overall. For the third consecutive season, she was named British Woman Kart Racing Driver of the year.[12]

The following year, she competed in the British Formula "A" Championship and was placed 13th, also achieving 34th overall in the Formula "A" World Championships to receive the accolade of British Woman Kart Racing Driver of the year for a fourth time.

In 2000, Wolff improved on her previous performances to take 10th in British Formula “A” and 15th in the Formula “A” World Championships, later winning an award which named her as the Top Female Kart Driver in the world.[13]

Formula Renault (2001–04)

In 2001, Wolff graduated from kart racing to single-seater racing, gaining her first experience in the Formula Renault Winter Series, in which she competed for the Motaworld Racing team. The following year she made her debut in the full Formula Renault UK Championship for DFR Racing while again representing Motaworld in the Formula Renault Winter Series.

In the 2003 season, Wolff finished ninth overall in the Formula Renault UK Championship and secured her maiden podium finish, achieving recognition for her efforts as one of the finalists in the prestigious BRDC McLaren Autosport Young Driver of the Year Award. Wolff was also selected as the BRDC Rising Star of the Year.

For her third season in the Formula Renault UK Championship in 2004, Wolff raced for Comtec Racing and finished fifth overall in the final standings, taking three podium finishes and points in 19 of the season’s 20 races.[14]

Formula Three (2005)

In 2005, Wolff advanced to the British Formula 3 Championship to compete for Alan Docking Racing in the Championship Class. Her season was disrupted by an ankle injury sustained during the winter. Wolff also made a one-off appearance in the Porsche Carrera Cup GB at Brands Hatch in June.[14]

DTM (2006–12)

In 2006, Wolff began to compete in the DTM. Racing for Mücke Motorsport, she drove a 2004-spec Mercedes-Benz C-Class Coupe and achieved a best finish of ninth overall in the final round at the Hockenheimring to complete her debut season.

Remaining in the DTM for 2007, again driving for Mücke Motorsport, Wolff recorded her best result at Mugello in Italy, where she finished in 10th place. At the end of the season, she left Mücke Motorsport to join Persson Motorsport for the 2008 season.

Moving up to a 2007-specification car, Wolff recorded her best performance of 2008 in June’s race at the Norisring in which she finished 10th – a result she equalled in 2009 on two occasions again at the Norisring and Oschersleben.

2010 showcased Wolff’s best season in the DTM and her third with Persson Motorsport. Taking a seventh-placed finish at Lausitz, she again matched this performance at the Hockenheimring to conclude the season with four points and 13th in the Drivers’ Championship.

Wolff continued to race in the DTM for a further two years Persson Motorsport and announced her departure from the series ahead of the 2012 finale at the Hockenheimring, ending her seven-season tenure to focus solely on her testing duties with Williams in Formula One.

Formula One

Williams (2012–15)

On 11 April 2012, Wolff was named as a development driver for the Williams Formula One team.[2][15] In 2014, Williams announced that Wolff would be driving in two free practice sessions at the British and German Grand Prix. At the British Grand Prix at Silverstone, Wolff became the first woman to participate in a Formula One weekend since 1992, when Giovanna Amati made three unsuccessful Grand Prix qualification attempts.

Wolff’s time on the track was cut short after an engine problem occurred after completing just one timed lap.[16] On 18 July 2014, Wolff drove in a free practice session at the German Grand Prix which also started with car problems. These issues were solved and Wolff put in a good performance, finishing the session in 15th place out of 22 cars with a time of 1:20.769, just two-tenths of a second behind team-mate Felipe Massa’s 11th-placed 1:20.542 time.

On 28 November 2014, Williams announced that Wolff would stay with the team for the 2015 season in an enhanced role as test driver, with her position expanded to include two Friday practice runs and two test outings.[17] After driving in Formula One pre-season testing, Wolff clocked a 1:29.708 lap in the first practice session of the Spanish Grand Prix and returned to the cockpit in practice for the British Grand Prix, posting a 1:37.242 for a respectable 13th place out of 20 cars.

On 4 November 2015, Wolff announced on the BBC that she was retiring from Formula One, stating that she felt that she had gone as far as she could go, but expressed intentions to help other women in motorsport.[18] Wolff stated that she would compete for one final time in the 2015 Race of Champions at the end of November, representing Scotland alongside former Formula One driver David Coulthard, before subsequently retiring from all forms of motorsport.[19]

Mercedes (2016–)

Wolff joined Mercedes as one of their ambassadors in 2016, and as part of the role was one of the first to test the Mercedes-AMG One.[20][21]

Formula E (2018–2022)

In 2018, Wolff joined Venturi Racing in Formula E as Team Principal and also became a shareholder in the team.[4]

For the 2019–20 season, Venturi entered into a powertrain partnership with Mercedes-EQ.[22]

Under Wolff’s management, the Monegasque outfit experienced its most successful campaign to date in the 2020–21 season, recording 146 points with Edoardo Mortara securing second in the Drivers' World Championship, falling only seven points adrift of winner Nyck de Vries.

In November 2021 she was promoted to the role of CEO, with Jérôme d'Ambrosio becoming Team Principal for the 2021–22 season.[23] In August 2022, she announced that she would leave Venturi in light of the team's plans to rebrand as Maserati MSG Racing from the 2022–23 season.[24]

F1 Academy (2023–)

On 1 March 2023, Wolff was appointed managing director of the newly launched all-female racing series, F1 Academy.[25]

Race of Champions

The Race of Champions planned to feature a female driver for the first time in its history when Wolff signed up for ROC 2013, to be held at Bangkok's Rajamangala Stadium on 14–15 December. The news was warmly welcomed by ROC co-founder Michèle Mouton, the world's most successful female rally driver.[26] However, in early December 2013, the event was cancelled due to the political situation in Bangkok.[27]

In the 2014 event in Barbados, the Wolff–Coulthard pair was able to compete as Team United Kingdom. The pair reached the finals of the Nations' Cup but lost to Team Nordic. Wolff lost to Tom Kristensen in the Audi R8 LMS Ultra while Coulthard won against Petter Solberg in the VW Polo RX, but lost the tie-breaker to Kristensen in the Ariel Atom Cup. In the Drivers' Cup, Wolff was eliminated in the group stage.

The 2015 Race of Champions was held at the Olympic Stadium in London and Wolff again partnered David Coulthard to represent Team Scotland. In the Nation’s Cup, the pair failed to progress to the semi-finals, eliminated by Team England 2. Driving the Mercedes-AMG GT S, Wolff lost to Alex Buncombe while Coulthard was defeated by Jenson Button in the KTM X-Bow. Racing against team-mate Coulthard, Wolff was eliminated in Round 1 of the Drivers’ Cup to conclude her professional career in motorsport, retiring at the end of the 2015 season.

Dare To Be Different

Following her retirement from motorsport, Wolff co-founded Dare to be Different alongside Motor Sports Association CEO Rob Jones. Officially launched at the Autosport International show held at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham on 14 January 2016, the nonprofit organisation aims to increase the participation of women in motorsport.

Holding events across the United Kingdom, the initiative invites school girls between the ages of eight and 14 to participate in motor racing-related activities. Dare to be Different has a range of ambassadors including former Williams Formula One Deputy Team Principal Claire Williams, Sky Sports News and Sky Sports F1 presenter Rachel Brookes, and racing driver Tatiana Calderón.

In February 2019, Dare to be Different united with the FIA Girls on Track initiative to reach a wider audience, raising awareness to the opportunities for girls in motorsport. The first joint FIA Girls on Track - Dare to be Different event was held at the 2019 Mexico City ePrix at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez.

Awards

On 8 October 2013, Wolff was awarded an Honorary Fellowship at the University of Edinburgh "in recognition of her role as an ambassador for women in sport".[28] She had interrupted her studies at Edinburgh's Business School in 2001 in order to turn professional.[29] Wolff was honoured as a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) on the 2017 New Year Honours list for services to Women in Sport.[1]

Racing record

Career summary

Season Series Team Races Wins Poles F/Laps Podiums Points Position
2002 Formula Renault UK Team DFR 11 0 0 0 0 45 18th
2003 Formula Renault UK Motaworld Racing 17 0 0 0 1 215 9th
2004 Formula Renault UK Comtec Racing with Duckhams 20 0 0 0 3 284 5th
2005 British Formula 3 Alan Docking Racing 2 0 0 0 0 2 18th
2006 Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters Mücke Motorsport 10 0 0 0 0 0 17th
2007 Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters Mücke Motorsport 10 0 0 0 0 0 20th
2008 Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters Persson Motorsport 11 0 0 0 0 0 18th
2009 Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters Persson Motorsport 10 0 0 0 0 0 16th
2010 Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters Persson Motorsport 11 0 0 0 0 4 13th
2011 Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters Persson Motorsport 10 0 0 0 0 0 18th
2012 Formula One Williams F1 Team Development driver
Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters Persson Motorsport 10 0 0 0 0 0 22nd
2013 Formula One Williams F1 Team Development driver
2014 Formula One Williams Martini Racing Test driver
2015 Formula One Williams Martini Racing Test driver
Source:[30]

Complete Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Team Car 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Pos Points
2006 Mücke Motorsport AMG-Mercedes C-Klasse 2004 HOC
10		 LAU
15		 OSC
15		 BRH
16		 NOR
14†		 NÜR
Ret		 ZAN
12		 CAT
15		 BUG
13		 HOC
9		 17th 0
2007 Mücke Motorsport AMG-Mercedes C-Klasse 2006 HOC
Ret		 OSC
16		 LAU
12		 BRH
16		 NOR
16		 MUG
10		 ZAN
17		 NÜR
18		 CAT
Ret		 HOC
14		 20th 0
2008 Persson Motorsport AMG-Mercedes C-Klasse 2007 HOC
16		 OSC
14		 MUG
15		 LAU
17†		 NOR
10		 ZAN
15		 NÜR
12		 BRH
19		 CAT
Ret		 BUG
12		 HOC
Ret		 18th 0
2009 Persson Motorsport AMG-Mercedes C-Klasse 2008 HOC
Ret		 LAU
11		 NOR
10		 ZAN
11		 OSC
10		 NÜR
11		 BRH
13		 CAT
15		 DIJ
14		 HOC
16†		 16th 0
2010 Persson Motorsport AMG-Mercedes C-Klasse 2008 HOC
11		 VAL
10		 LAU
7		 NOR
15		 NÜR
Ret		 ZAN
15		 BRH
Ret		 OSC
10		 HOC
7		 ADR
14		 SHA
11		 13th 4
2011 Persson Motorsport AMG-Mercedes C-Klasse 2008 HOC
12		 ZAN
12		 SPL
13		 LAU
DNS		 NOR
13		 NÜR
14		 BRH
14		 OSC
Ret		 VAL
11		 HOC
15		 18th 0
2012 Persson Motorsport AMG Mercedes C-Coupé HOC
12		 LAU
21		 BRH
20†		 SPL
14		 NOR
Ret		 NÜR
17		 ZAN
12		 OSC
Ret		 VAL
13		 HOC
13		 22nd 0
Sources:[31][32]
  • † — Retired, but was classified as she completed 90 per cent of the winner's race distance.

Complete Formula One participations

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicates fastest lap)

Year Entrant Chassis Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 WDC Points
2014 Williams Martini Racing Williams FW36 Mercedes PU106A Hybrid 1.6 V6 t AUS MAL BHR CHN ESP MON CAN AUT GBR
TD		 GER
TD		 HUN BEL ITA SIN JPN RUS USA BRA ABU – –
2015 Williams Martini Racing Williams FW37 Mercedes PU106B Hybrid 1.6 V6 t AUS MAL CHN BHR ESP
TD		 MON CAN AUT GBR
TD		 HUN BEL ITA SIN JPN RUS USA MEX BRA ABU – –
Sources:[33][34]

References

  1. 1 2 "New Year's Honours list 2017" (PDF). Gov.uk. Government Digital Service. 30 December 2016. p. 92. Retrieved 31 December 2016.
  2. 1 2 Elizalde, Pablo (11 April 2012). "Susie Wolff joins Williams as development driver". Autosport. Haymarket Publications. Retrieved 11 April 2012.
  3. ↑ "British Grand Prix 2014: Susie Wolff the first woman to take part in a Formula One race weekend in 22 years". Independent. 4 July 2014. Archived from the original on 25 May 2022.
  4. 1 2 "Susie Wolff Appointed Team Principal of Venturi Formula E Team". venturi.com. 26 June 2018. Retrieved 10 August 2018.
  5. ↑ "ROKIT VENTURI RACING ANNOUNCES MANAGEMENT RESTRUCTURE". Archived from the original on 27 November 2021. Retrieved 25 November 2021.
  6. ↑ "Susie Wolff announces her departure from Venturi Formula E team". 17 August 2022. Retrieved 17 August 2022.
  7. ↑ "Oban woman Susie Wolff joins Williams F1 team". BBC News. 13 April 2012.
  8. ↑ "Susie Wolff". thegentlewoman.co.uk. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
  9. ↑ "Toto Wolff Associate Fellow". Oxford University.
  10. ↑ "The motor racing power couple speak to Helen Cullen". The Times. 7 June 2020.
  11. ↑ "Susie Wolff • Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
  12. 1 2 "Susie Wolff: Profile". espn.co.uk. Retrieved 16 April 2013.
  13. ↑ "About Susie". Susie Stoddart. 22 May 2009. Archived from the original on 26 September 2008. Retrieved 22 May 2009.
  14. 1 2 "About Susie". Susie Stoddart. 22 May 2009. Archived from the original on 28 January 2008. Retrieved 22 May 2009.
  15. ↑ "Susie Wolff joins Williams as development driver". Formula1.com. Formula One Administration. 11 April 2012. Retrieved 12 April 2012.
  16. ↑ "Susie Wolff hits trouble on British GP F1 debut for Williams". BBC Sport. 4 July 2014. Retrieved 4 July 2014.
  17. ↑ "Susie Wolff to stay at Williams next season as test driver". BBC Sport.
  18. ↑ "WILLIAMS CONFIRMS SUSIE WOLFF TO RETIRE FROM MOTORSPORT". Williams Grand Prix Engineering. 4 November 2015. Archived from the original on 6 November 2015. Retrieved 4 November 2015.
  19. ↑ McKenzie, Lee (4 November 2015). "A return to Mexico, a farewell to Wolff". Motor Sport magazine. Retrieved 4 November 2015.
  20. ↑ Spencer, Roy (14 June 2017). "Who is Susie Wolff?". MercedesHeritage. Retrieved 6 September 2022.
  21. ↑ Coman, Monica (2 June 2022). "Former Racing Driver Susie Wolff Tests Out the Mercedes-AMG One, It Was "Pure Joy"". autoevolution. Retrieved 6 September 2022.
  22. ↑ "Venturi to use Mercedes powertrain". RACER. 4 October 2019. Retrieved 1 March 2023.
  23. ↑ "ROKIT VENTURI RACING ANNOUNCES MANAGEMENT RESTRUCTURE". Archived from the original on 27 November 2021. Retrieved 25 November 2021.
  24. ↑ url=https://twitter.com/Susie_Wolff/status/1559581281654116352
  25. ↑ "Susie Wolff appointed managing director of F1 Academy". www.autosport.com. Retrieved 1 March 2023.
  26. ↑ "Susie Wolff to team up with David Coulthard at ROC 2013". Race of Champions. Retrieved 24 November 2013.
  27. ↑ "Race Of Champions 2013 Update".
  28. ↑ Programme notes at the Celebration of Achievement ceremony at McEwan Hall, Edinburgh on 8 October 2013
  29. ↑ "A celebration of achievement".
  30. ↑ "Susie Wolff". Driver Database. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
  31. ↑ "Susie Wolff Results". Motorsport Stats. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
  32. ↑ "Susie Wolff race results". TouringCars.net. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
  33. ↑ "Susie Wolff". Motor Sport. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
  34. ↑ "Susie Wolff – Involvement". StatsF1. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
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