Wolff Preparing to Divest Stake Pricing Mercedes Formula 1 Team at £4.6bn
Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to offload a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
The deal values Mercedes at £4.6 billion – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – following the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5 billion in a change of ownership structure last September.
Wolff, who holds one-third of Mercedes F1, plans to divest a stake in the region of five percent.
The 53-year-old would stay on as team boss and CEO should the deal proceed.
Ownership Breakdown
Remaining partners in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes-Benz and chemicals giant Ineos, who both hold a third of the enterprise.
An official representative stated: "We are providing no comment on the matter. The management structure of the team will remain unaltered, and all three partners are dedicated to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in F1."
Valuation Growth
This arrangement would represent a significant increase in worth of Mercedes F1 since Ineos Group acquired its stake for £208m in 2022.
This surge reflects the growth in valuations of F1 teams recently due to the growing popularity of the sport globally.
This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film featuring Brad Pitt, which debuted last summer and has grossed more than $630m (£458 million) at the box office.
The film represents Pitt's most successful movie and the highest-earning sports film to date.
Present Performance
Mercedes are runner-up in the team standings, behind McLaren, with three Grands Prix remaining in the current championship.
Their lead driver George Russell has won two of the 21 races so far and is in fourth place in the drivers' championship after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes secured a record eight straight team titles and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, from 2014 and 2021.
