Wolff Set to Sell Shareholding Pricing Mercedes F1 at £4.6 Billion
Toto Wolff is in advanced talks to offload a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
The deal estimates Mercedes at £4.6bn – a record for a Formula 1 squad – following the McLaren team were valued at £3.5bn in a change of corporate structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who owns one-third of Mercedes F1, plans to divest a stake in the region of five percent.
Wolff, aged 53 would stay on as team principal and CEO should the deal proceed.
Shareholder Breakdown
The other shareholders in the team are Mercedes-Benz and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who each also own a third of the company.
An official representative stated: "We are providing no comment on the matter. The governance of Mercedes F1 will remain unaltered, and all three partners are fully committed to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in F1."
Financial Increase
The deal would represent a significant increase in value of the Mercedes team after Ineos Group acquired its stake for £208 million in 2022.
The rise demonstrates the expansion in market values of F1 teams in the past few years as a consequence of the growing popularity of the sport globally.
This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the F1 movie featuring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and has grossed more than $630m (£458 million) at the box office.
The film represents Pitt's most successful movie and the most successful sports film to date.
Current Standings
The Mercedes team are second in the constructors' championship, behind McLaren, with three Grands Prix remaining this season.
Their lead driver George Russell has secured victory in 2 of the 21 races this year and is in fourth place in the drivers' championship behind McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
The team secured a unprecedented eight straight team titles and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.