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 ownership stake in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
The deal estimates the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – a record for a Formula 1 squad – after McLaren was appraised at £3.5bn in a change of corporate structure in September.
Wolff, who owns one-third of Mercedes F1, would sell a stake approximately five percent.
Wolff, aged 53 will remain as team principal and chief executive officer if the sale goes through.
Shareholder Structure
The other shareholders in the team are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos Group, who each also own a third of the enterprise.
An official representative stated: "We are providing no comment on this. The governance of the team will remain unchanged, and all three partners are dedicated to continued achievements of the brand in F1."
Valuation Growth
This arrangement would represent a substantial rise in worth of Mercedes F1 after Ineos bought its stake for £208m in 2022.
The rise demonstrates the growth in valuations of F1 teams recently due to the growing popularity of Formula 1 globally.
This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film starring Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and earned over $630m (£458m) at cinemas worldwide.
The film represents the actor's top-grossing movie and the most successful sports film ever released.
Present Performance
Mercedes are runner-up in the constructors' championship, behind McLaren, with three races left in the current championship.
Mercedes' primary racer 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.
Mercedes won a record eight consecutive team titles and seven driver championships, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, from 2014 to 2021.