Toto Wolff Preparing to Sell Stake Valuing Mercedes Formula 1 Team at £4.6 Billion
Toto Wolff is in advanced talks to sell part of his shareholding in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
The deal estimates Mercedes at £4.6bn – a record for a Formula 1 squad – following the McLaren team were valued at £3.5bn in a change of corporate structure last September.
The Austrian executive, who holds a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, plans to divest a shareholding in the region of five percent.
Wolff, aged 53 would stay on as team boss and CEO if the sale goes through.
Ownership Breakdown
Remaining partners in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos Group, 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 unaltered, and all three partners are fully committed to continued achievements of the brand in Formula One."
Valuation Growth
The deal would represent a substantial rise in worth of the Mercedes team since Ineos bought its stake for £208 million in 2022.
The rise demonstrates the expansion in valuations of Formula 1 outfits in the past few years due to the increasing appeal of Formula 1 globally.
This was also seen in the success of the F1 movie featuring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and has grossed over $630 million (£458m) at cinemas worldwide.
The film represents the actor's top-grossing movie and the most successful sports movie ever released.
Current Performance
The Mercedes team are runner-up in the constructors' championship, behind McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix left in the current championship.
Mercedes' primary racer George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 grands prix this year and is in fourth place in the drivers' championship behind McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
The team won a unprecedented eight consecutive team titles and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, from 2014 and 2021.
