Wolff Preparing to Divest Shareholding Pricing Mercedes Formula 1 Team at £4.6bn
Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to sell part of his ownership stake in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
The deal estimates Mercedes at £4.6bn – a record for an F1 team – following the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5 billion in a change of ownership structure in September.
Wolff, who owns a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, would sell a shareholding approximately five percent.
The 53-year-old will remain as team boss and CEO if the sale goes through.
Shareholder Structure
The other shareholders in the team are Mercedes-Benz and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who both hold a third of the company.
A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We will be making no official statement on this. The governance of Mercedes F1 will remain unchanged, and all three partners are dedicated to continued achievements of the brand in Formula One."
Financial Increase
This arrangement signifies a substantial rise in value of Mercedes F1 after Ineos bought its stake for £208m in 2022.
This surge demonstrates the expansion in market values of Formula 1 outfits in the past few years due to the increasing appeal of Formula 1 globally.
This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the F1 movie featuring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which debuted last summer and earned more than $630 million (£458 million) at cinemas worldwide.
The film represents the actor's top-grossing film and the most successful sports movie ever released.
Current Standings
The Mercedes team are runner-up in the team standings, behind McLaren Racing, with three races left this season.
Mercedes' primary racer George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 grands prix so far and is fourth in the individual standings after McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes won a unprecedented eight straight team titles and seven drivers' titles, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, from 2014 and 2021.
