Wolff Preparing to Divest Stake Pricing Mercedes F1 at £4.6bn
Toto Wolff is engaged in advanced talks to sell part of his ownership stake in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
This transaction estimates Mercedes at £4.6bn – a record for an F1 team – after the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5 billion in an adjustment to ownership structure last September.
Wolff, who owns a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, would sell a shareholding approximately five percent.
The 53-year-old will remain as team boss and CEO should the deal proceed.
Ownership Structure
The other shareholders in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes-Benz and industrial group Ineos Group, who each also own a third of the enterprise.
A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We will be making no comment on the matter. The management structure of the team will remain unaltered, and all three partners are dedicated to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in F1."
Valuation Increase
The deal signifies a substantial rise in value of the Mercedes team since Ineos acquired its share for £208m in 2022.
The rise demonstrates the expansion in valuations of Formula 1 outfits in the past few years as a consequence of the growing popularity of Formula 1 globally.
This was also seen in the success of the F1 movie featuring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which debuted last summer and earned over $630 million (£458m) at cinemas worldwide.
The film represents the actor's top-grossing movie and the highest-earning sports film to date.
Current Standings
The Mercedes team are runner-up in the constructors' championship, behind McLaren, with three races remaining in the current championship.
Their lead driver British driver George Russell has won two of the 21 grands prix so far and is fourth in the drivers' championship after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
The team won a record eight consecutive team titles and seven driver championships, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.
