At just nine years old, Jack Wolff, the son of Toto and Susie Wolff, is already starting to make a name for himself in karting. The young driver is currently leading the IAME championship and has already won a race.
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His father, however, believes it is far too early to imagine his future in Formula 1.
The Mercedes boss nevertheless notes that teams are recruiting increasingly younger drivers into their academies: « Some Formula 1 teams are now starting to scout… We recruited Nicolo Perrico, who is 11 years old, because he won several championships », explains Wolff.
Red Bull also has drivers aged 11 or 12 in its program, while Cadillac reportedly already recruited a youngster of only ten years old: « Is this the future? », Wolff wonders.
« He has a target on his back »
Regarding his own son, the Austrian acknowledges that bearing the Wolff name has as many advantages as disadvantages: « The advantage is that his parents know motorsport and we have a lot of contacts. The disadvantage is that he has a target on his back. »
According to him, other young drivers are particularly motivated when they face Jack: « Everyone wants to be faster than Jack and everyone wants to push him off the track, especially because he is also the youngest. This makes him stronger. »
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Toto Wolff believes that his son will have to reach a particularly high level for his results to be considered solely the fruit of his talent: « He must be better than everyone else. Only then will he be able to justify that everything he accomplishes is thanks to his merit. »
A privileged environment
Jack, however, does not yet seem fully aware of this pressure. During a race, he found himself alone against six drivers from the same team: « He told me: “Dad, I can beat three of them, but it’s hard to beat six when they work together.” »
Wolff finally acknowledges that his knowledge of competition and his resources allow him to offer his son a particularly favorable environment.
However, at nine years old, no trajectory towards Formula 1 has yet been traced. For Jack Wolff, the main goal remains to continue progressing and proving himself in karting.
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