Wolff on Poole: 'Great addition and a good psychologist'

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff says Red Bull's former COO Jayne Poole has played a part in the team's succesful attempt to fight its way back to the top of the Formula 1 championship. Prior to the season opener in Bahrain, it was announced that Mercedes had hired Red Bull's former COO and HR director Poole as its new special adviser.

Wolff says the fact that Poole worked for the rival does not mean he did not recognise or respect her achievements. "Her role at Red Bull was, in my opinion, a very large part of the success of the team over the last years," he says in an interview with Autosport.com.

'Great addition for Mercedes'

Poole's job is to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of the current infrastructure at Mercedes and offer advice on where improvements can be made.

"She's a great addition," continued the Mercedes team boss, who sees in Poole not only an advisor, but also a "great psychologist". Besides having knowledge of another organisation, Wolff says she knows many people in the sport, which makes her capable of creating "forensic profiles" of all the skilled people in Formula 1.