Toto Wolff Preparing to Sell Stake Pricing 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.
The deal values the Mercedes team at £4.6 billion – a record for a Formula 1 squad – after McLaren was appraised at £3.5 billion in a change of corporate structure in September.
Wolff, who owns a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, plans to divest a stake approximately five percent.
The 53-year-old would stay on as team principal and chief executive officer should the deal proceed.
Shareholder Breakdown
The other shareholders in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who each also own a third of the enterprise.
A Mercedes spokesperson stated: "We will be making no official statement on the matter. The governance of the team will remain unchanged, and all three partners are fully committed to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in Formula One."
Valuation Growth
The deal signifies a significant increase in worth of the Mercedes team since Ineos acquired its share for £208 million in 2022.
This surge demonstrates the growth in market values of F1 teams in the past few years due to the increasing appeal of the sport globally.
This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the F1 movie featuring Brad Pitt, which debuted last summer and has grossed more than $630m (£458m) at the box office.
The film represents Pitt's most successful film and the most successful sports movie ever released.
Present Standings
The Mercedes team are runner-up in the team standings, trailing McLaren, with three Grands Prix remaining this season.
Their lead driver George Russell has won two of the 21 races this year and is fourth in the drivers' championship behind McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes secured a record eight straight constructors' championships and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, from 2014 to 2021.
