Toto Wolff Set to Sell Shareholding Valuing Mercedes F1 at £4.6 Billion
Toto Wolff is engaged in advanced talks to sell part of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
The deal values the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – after the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5 billion in a change of ownership structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who holds one-third of the Mercedes F1 operation, plans to divest a stake in the region of 5%.
The 53-year-old will remain as team principal and CEO should the deal proceed.
Shareholder Structure
Remaining partners in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes-Benz and chemicals giant Ineos, who both hold one-third of the company.
An official representative said: "We will be making no comment on the matter. The governance of the team stays unaltered, and each shareholder are dedicated to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in F1."
Financial Growth
This arrangement signifies a significant increase in worth of Mercedes F1 since Ineos Group acquired its stake for £208 million in 2022.
The rise reflects the growth in market values of Formula 1 outfits recently as a consequence of the increasing appeal of the sport around the world.
This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film starring Brad Pitt, which debuted last summer and earned over $630 million (£458 million) at the box office.
It is Pitt's most successful film and the most successful sports movie ever released.
Current Standings
The Mercedes team are second in the constructors' championship, trailing McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix remaining this season.
Mercedes' primary racer British driver George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 grands prix this year and is fourth in the individual standings after McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes won a unprecedented eight straight constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, from 2014 and 2021.