Wolff Set to Sell Stake Valuing Mercedes F1 at £4.6bn

Toto Wolff is in advanced talks to offload a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes F1 outfit.

The deal 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 an adjustment to corporate structure in September.

The Austrian executive, who owns a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, plans to divest a shareholding in the region of five percent.

Wolff, aged 53 would stay on as team boss and CEO should the deal proceed.

Shareholder Breakdown

The other shareholders in the team are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos, who both hold one-third of the company.

An official representative said: "We are providing no official statement on this. The governance of Mercedes F1 stays unchanged, and all three partners are dedicated to the ongoing success of the brand in F1."

Valuation Growth

This arrangement would represent a substantial rise in value of the Mercedes team since Ineos Group acquired its share for £208 million in 2022.

This surge demonstrates the expansion in valuations of Formula 1 outfits recently as a consequence of the growing popularity of the sport around the world.

This was also seen in the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film featuring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released last summer and has grossed over $630 million (£458m) at cinemas worldwide.

It is Pitt's most successful movie and the most successful sports film to date.

Present Performance

The Mercedes team are second in the team standings, trailing McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix left in the current championship.

Mercedes' primary racer British driver George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 grands prix so far and is fourth in the drivers' championship after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.

Mercedes secured a record eight consecutive team titles and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, from 2014 to 2021.