Toto Wolff Preparing to Divest Stake Valuing Mercedes F1 at £4.6 Billion
Toto Wolff is engaged in advanced talks to sell a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
The deal values the Mercedes team at £4.6 billion – a record for a Formula 1 squad – after McLaren was appraised at £3.5bn in a change of corporate structure last September.
Wolff, who owns a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, plans to divest a shareholding in the region of 5%.
The 53-year-old will remain as team boss and CEO should the deal proceed.
Ownership Breakdown
Remaining partners in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos Group, who both hold one-third of the company.
An official representative said: "We will be making no official statement on this. The governance of the team stays unchanged, and each shareholder are fully committed to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in F1."
Valuation Growth
This arrangement signifies a significant increase in worth of Mercedes F1 after Ineos acquired its share for £208 million in 2022.
The rise demonstrates the expansion in market values of Formula 1 outfits in the past few years due to the growing popularity of Formula 1 around the world.
This trend was evident with the success of the F1 movie starring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and has grossed more than $630 million (£458 million) at the box office.
It is the actor's top-grossing movie and the highest-earning sports film to date.
Present Performance
Mercedes are runner-up in the constructors' championship, behind McLaren, with three Grands Prix remaining in the current championship.
Their lead driver British driver George Russell has secured victory in 2 of the 21 races so far and is in fourth place in the individual standings after McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes secured a record eight consecutive team titles and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.
