Wolff Preparing to Sell Shareholding Pricing Mercedes Formula 1 Team at £4.6bn
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is engaged in advanced talks to sell a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
This transaction values the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – a record for an F1 team – after McLaren were valued at £3.5bn in a change of ownership structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who owns a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, would sell a stake in the region of five percent.
The 53-year-old will remain as team principal and CEO if the sale goes through.
Ownership Structure
Remaining partners in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos, who both hold a third of the enterprise.
An official representative stated: "We are providing no official statement on the matter. The management structure of the team will remain unchanged, and all three partners are fully committed to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in F1."
Financial Increase
The deal would represent a significant increase in value of Mercedes F1 after Ineos Group bought its share for £208 million in 2022.
The rise reflects the expansion in valuations of F1 teams recently as a consequence of the growing popularity of the sport globally.
This trend was evident with the success of the F1 movie starring Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and has grossed over $630m (£458m) at the box office.
The film represents Pitt's most successful film and the highest-earning sports film to date.
Current Standings
The Mercedes team are second in the constructors' championship, behind McLaren, with three races left in the current championship.
Mercedes' primary racer George Russell has secured victory in two 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.
The team won a unprecedented eight straight team titles and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.
