Toto Wolff Preparing to Divest Stake Valuing Mercedes F1 at £4.6 Billion
Toto Wolff is in final negotiations to sell a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
This transaction estimates the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – a record for an F1 team – following McLaren was appraised at £3.5 billion in a change of corporate structure last September.
The Austrian executive, who owns a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a stake approximately five percent.
The 53-year-old will remain as team principal and chief executive officer if the sale goes through.
Shareholder Structure
Remaining partners in the team are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who both hold one-third of the company.
An official representative stated: "We are providing no official statement on the matter. The management structure of the team will remain unchanged, and each shareholder are dedicated to continued achievements of the brand in F1."
Valuation Increase
The deal would represent a significant increase in worth of Mercedes F1 after Ineos Group acquired its share for £208m in 2022.
This surge demonstrates the expansion in market values of F1 teams recently due to the increasing appeal of the sport globally.
This was also seen in the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film featuring Brad Pitt, which was released last summer and earned over $630m (£458 million) at the box office.
The film represents Pitt's most successful movie and the highest-earning sports film to date.
Present Standings
Mercedes are second in the constructors' championship, behind McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix left in the current championship.
Their lead driver George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 grands prix so far and is fourth in the drivers' championship behind McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
The team won a record eight consecutive team titles and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, from 2014 to 2021.
