Toto Wolff Preparing to Sell Stake Valuing Mercedes F1 at £4.6 Billion
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is engaged in advanced talks to offload a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
The deal values the Mercedes team at £4.6 billion – an unprecedented figure for an F1 team – after McLaren were valued at £3.5 billion in a change of ownership structure last September.
Wolff, who owns one-third of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a shareholding approximately five percent.
Wolff, aged 53 will remain as team boss and CEO should the deal proceed.
Ownership Breakdown
The other shareholders in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos, who both hold a third of the company.
An official representative said: "We will be making no official statement on the matter. The governance of Mercedes F1 stays unaltered, and all three partners are dedicated to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in F1."
Financial Growth
The deal signifies a significant increase in value of Mercedes F1 since Ineos Group acquired its share for £208 million in 2022.
This surge demonstrates the expansion in market values of F1 teams recently as a consequence of the increasing appeal of Formula 1 globally.
This was also seen in the box-office performance of the F1 movie featuring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released last summer and has grossed more than $630 million (£458 million) at cinemas worldwide.
It is Pitt's most successful movie and the highest-earning sports film to date.
Current Standings
The Mercedes team are runner-up in the team standings, trailing McLaren, with three Grands Prix remaining in the current championship.
Mercedes' primary racer British driver George Russell has won two of the 21 races so far and is fourth in the individual standings after McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes won a unprecedented eight consecutive team titles and seven driver championships, six for Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, from 2014 and 2021.
