Toto Wolff Set to Divest Shareholding Pricing Mercedes F1 at £4.6bn
Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to sell part of his ownership stake in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
This transaction values the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for an F1 team – following McLaren was appraised at £3.5bn in an adjustment to corporate structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who owns one-third of Mercedes F1, would sell a shareholding approximately 5%.
The 53-year-old will remain as team principal and CEO should the deal proceed.
Shareholder Breakdown
The other shareholders in the team are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who each also own one-third of the company.
An official representative stated: "We are providing no official statement on the matter. The governance of Mercedes F1 stays unchanged, and all three partners are fully committed to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in F1."
Valuation Increase
This arrangement would represent a substantial rise in worth of Mercedes F1 since Ineos acquired its stake for £208 million in 2022.
The rise demonstrates the expansion in valuations of Formula 1 outfits recently as a consequence of the growing popularity of Formula 1 around the world.
This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film featuring Brad Pitt, which debuted last summer and earned more than $630m (£458m) at the box office.
The film represents the actor's top-grossing film and the most successful sports film ever released.
Present Performance
The Mercedes team are runner-up in the team standings, behind McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix left this season.
Their lead driver George Russell has won 2 of the 21 races this year and is fourth in the drivers' championship behind McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes won a record eight consecutive team titles and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, from 2014 and 2021.
