Wolff Preparing to Divest Shareholding Valuing Mercedes F1 at £4.6 Billion
Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to offload part of his ownership stake in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
This transaction values the Mercedes team at £4.6 billion – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – after the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5bn in an adjustment to ownership structure last September.
Wolff, who holds one-third of the Mercedes F1 operation, plans to divest a stake in the region of five percent.
Wolff, aged 53 would stay on as team principal and chief executive officer should the deal proceed.
Shareholder Breakdown
Remaining partners in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who each also own a third of the enterprise.
An official representative said: "We are providing no comment on this. The governance of Mercedes F1 will remain unchanged, and all three partners are fully committed to continued achievements of the brand in Formula One."
Financial Growth
The deal would represent a substantial rise in value of the Mercedes team after Ineos Group bought its stake for £208m in 2022.
The rise demonstrates the expansion in valuations of F1 teams in the past few years as a consequence of the increasing appeal of the sport around the world.
This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film starring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and earned over $630m (£458m) at the box office.
The film represents Pitt's most successful movie and the most successful sports film to date.
Current Performance
Mercedes are runner-up in the team standings, trailing McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix remaining this season.
Mercedes' primary racer George Russell has won two of the 21 grands prix so far and is in fourth place in the drivers' championship after McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
The team won a record eight straight constructors' championships and seven driver championships, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.
