Toto Wolff Preparing to Divest Shareholding Valuing Mercedes F1 at £4.6 Billion
Toto Wolff is in final negotiations to offload a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
The deal values Mercedes at £4.6 billion – a record for an F1 team – following McLaren were valued at £3.5 billion in a change of corporate structure last September.
The Austrian executive, who owns one-third of Mercedes F1, plans to divest a stake in the region of five percent.
The 53-year-old would stay on as team principal and CEO if the sale goes through.
Ownership Structure
The other shareholders in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes-Benz and chemicals giant Ineos, who both hold a third of the enterprise.
A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We are providing no comment on this. The governance of the team stays unchanged, and all three partners are dedicated to the ongoing success of the brand in Formula One."
Valuation Growth
This arrangement signifies a significant increase in worth of Mercedes F1 since Ineos Group acquired its share for £208 million in 2022.
This surge demonstrates the expansion in valuations of F1 teams in the past few years due to the growing popularity of the sport globally.
This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film featuring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and has grossed over $630 million (£458 million) at the box office.
The film represents the actor's top-grossing movie and the most successful sports movie ever released.
Current Performance
Mercedes are runner-up in the constructors' championship, trailing McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix left this season.
Their lead driver British driver George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 races this year and is fourth in the individual standings behind McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
The team won a record eight straight team titles and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.
