Wolff Preparing to Divest Stake Pricing Mercedes Formula 1 Team at £4.6bn
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is in advanced talks to offload a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
This transaction values the Mercedes team at £4.6 billion – a record for an F1 team – following the McLaren team were valued at £3.5 billion in a change of corporate structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who holds a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, would sell a stake in the region of five percent.
Wolff, aged 53 would stay on as team boss and CEO if the sale goes through.
Ownership Structure
The other shareholders in the team are Mercedes-Benz and chemicals giant Ineos, who each also own a third of the company.
An official representative stated: "We will be making no comment on this. The management structure of the team stays unaltered, and all three partners are fully committed to the ongoing success of the brand in F1."
Financial Increase
The deal would represent a significant increase in worth of Mercedes F1 after Ineos Group acquired its stake for £208 million in 2022.
This surge demonstrates the expansion in market values of Formula 1 outfits recently as a consequence of the increasing appeal of Formula 1 around the world.
This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the F1 movie featuring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and earned more than $630m (£458 million) at cinemas worldwide.
The film represents Pitt's most successful movie and the most successful sports movie to date.
Present Standings
Mercedes are runner-up in the team standings, trailing McLaren, with three Grands Prix remaining this season.
Mercedes' primary racer George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 races this year and is fourth 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 constructors' championships and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.
