Wolff Preparing to Divest Stake Valuing Mercedes Formula 1 Team at £4.6bn
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is in advanced talks to offload part of his shareholding in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
This transaction values the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – a record for an F1 team – after McLaren were valued at £3.5 billion in a change of corporate structure last September.
Wolff, who holds one-third of Mercedes F1, plans to divest a stake in the region of 5%.
The 53-year-old would stay on as team boss and chief executive officer if the sale goes through.
Shareholder Structure
Remaining partners in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos Group, who both hold one-third of the enterprise.
An official representative stated: "We are providing no comment on this. The management structure of the team stays unaltered, and each shareholder are dedicated to the ongoing success of the brand in F1."
Valuation Growth
The deal would represent a substantial rise in value of the Mercedes team since Ineos Group bought its stake for £208 million in 2022.
The rise reflects the growth in valuations of Formula 1 outfits recently due to the growing popularity of the sport around the world.
This was also seen in the success of the Formula 1 film starring Brad Pitt, which was released last summer and earned over $630 million (£458 million) at cinemas worldwide.
It is the actor's top-grossing movie and the most successful sports movie to date.
Present Performance
The Mercedes team are second in the team standings, trailing McLaren, with three Grands Prix remaining in the current championship.
Mercedes' primary racer British driver George Russell has won 2 of the 21 races so far and is in fourth place in the individual standings behind McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
The team secured a unprecedented eight consecutive team titles and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.
