Toto Wolff Preparing to Sell Shareholding Valuing Mercedes F1 at £4.6 Billion
Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to sell part of his shareholding in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
The deal estimates the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – a record for an F1 team – after McLaren was appraised at £3.5bn in a change of ownership structure in September.
Wolff, who holds one-third of Mercedes F1, plans to divest a stake approximately 5%.
The 53-year-old will remain as team boss and CEO should the deal proceed.
Shareholder Structure
Remaining partners in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes-Benz and chemicals giant Ineos, who each also own a third of the enterprise.
An official representative stated: "We are providing no official statement on the matter. The governance of the team will remain unchanged, and all three partners are dedicated to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in Formula One."
Valuation Increase
The deal signifies a significant increase in worth of the Mercedes team after Ineos Group acquired its stake for £208 million in 2022.
This surge reflects the expansion in market values of Formula 1 outfits in the past few years as a consequence of the growing popularity of Formula 1 globally.
This trend was evident with the success of the Formula 1 film starring Brad Pitt, which was released last summer and has grossed more than $630 million (£458m) at cinemas worldwide.
It is Pitt's most successful movie and the highest-earning sports film ever released.
Current Performance
Mercedes are runner-up in the team standings, trailing McLaren, with three races left in the current championship.
Their lead driver British driver George Russell has secured victory in 2 of the 21 races this year and is fourth in the drivers' championship after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
The team won a record eight consecutive constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.
