Wolff Preparing to Divest Stake Valuing Mercedes Formula 1 Team at £4.6bn
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is engaged in advanced talks to sell part of his shareholding in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
This transaction values the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – a record for an F1 team – after McLaren was appraised at £3.5bn in a change of corporate structure last September.
The Austrian executive, who owns a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, plans to divest a shareholding in the region of five percent.
The 53-year-old would stay on as team boss and CEO should the deal proceed.
Ownership Structure
Remaining partners in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos Group, who both hold a third of the company.
A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We will be making no comment on this. The governance of the team stays unchanged, and all three partners are dedicated to continued achievements of the brand in Formula One."
Valuation Growth
The deal would represent a significant increase in worth of Mercedes F1 since Ineos Group acquired its stake for £208m in 2022.
The rise demonstrates the expansion in market values of F1 teams in the past few years as a consequence of the increasing appeal of the sport around the world.
This was also seen in the success of the Formula 1 film featuring Brad Pitt, which debuted last summer and earned over $630 million (£458 million) at the box office.
The film represents the actor's top-grossing movie and the most successful sports film ever released.
Current Standings
Mercedes are second in the team standings, trailing McLaren, with three Grands Prix remaining this season.
Their lead driver British driver George Russell has won 2 of the 21 grands prix so far and is fourth in the individual standings behind McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes won a unprecedented eight straight team titles and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.