Toto Wolff Preparing to Divest Stake Pricing Mercedes F1 at £4.6bn
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is in advanced talks to offload a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
The deal values the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – a record for an F1 team – following the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5 billion in a change of corporate structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who holds a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, would sell a shareholding approximately five percent.
Wolff, aged 53 will remain as team boss and CEO should the deal proceed.
Shareholder Structure
The other shareholders in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who each also own a third of the enterprise.
An official representative stated: "We are providing no comment on the matter. The governance of the team stays unaltered, and all three partners are fully committed to continued achievements of the brand in F1."
Valuation Increase
This arrangement would represent a significant increase in worth of the Mercedes team since Ineos Group acquired its share for £208m in 2022.
This surge reflects the growth in market values of F1 teams in the past few years as a consequence of the increasing appeal of Formula 1 globally.
This was also seen in the success of the Formula 1 film featuring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and earned more than $630 million (£458 million) at cinemas worldwide.
The film represents the actor's top-grossing film and the highest-earning sports movie to date.
Present Standings
Mercedes are second in the team standings, trailing McLaren, with three Grands Prix left in the current championship.
Their lead driver George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 races so far and is in fourth place in the drivers' championship after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes secured a record eight consecutive team titles and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.
