MERCEDES boss Toto Wolff will be absent from the next Formula One race in Japan, the PA news agency reported today.

It is understood that Wolff’s decision to miss the race in Suzuka on April 7 was taken before the start of the new season and is not connected to the team’s performance in Australia.

Wolff admitted after Sunday’s race at Melbourne’s Albert Park that it was “fair” to question his future as team principal following Mercedes’ troubling weekend.