Racing Point team principal Otmar Szafnauer doesn't believe that Toto Wolff's personal investment in Aston Martin Lagonda will lead to the Mercedes boss taking a stake in its affiliated F1 outfit.
The Aston Martin name will return to Grand Prix racing next season thanks to its tie-up with Racing Point, an partnership established by the pink team's owner and new Aston investor Lawrence Stroll.
Wolff - a close friend of Stroll - recently revealed that he had acquired a 0.95% stake in the prestigious sportscar manufacturer, but Szafnauer doubts the Austrian will get involved in Racing Point beyond the team's current engine partnership with Mercedes.
"He's done an amazing job at Mercedes, but I can't see him having a stake in our team for example," Szafnauer said in a video cast with Sky Sports.
"The road car company, having shares in that is completely different than having shares in a loss-making Formula 1 team."
Wolff recently said that his decision to invest approximately £37 million in Aston Martin Lagonda - prompted in part by the company's depressed share price - was done with the approval of Mercedes' parent company Daimler.
Whether it will prove fruitful, only time will tell, but Szafnauer says the astute Austrian's track record as an investor bodes well for his Aston endeavor.
"I haven't spoken to him in six or seven weeks since the Australian Grand Prix," he said.
"But knowing Toto like I do, I think he's absolutely right, it was a good time to buy if you look at the share price and the trend.
"Toto's pretty smart at that stuff, I think he's made a little bit of money in these types of things, and I wouldn't doubt what he says. I think he's absolutely right, good time to buy."
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