🔗 Share this article

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to sell part of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.

This transaction values Mercedes at £4.6 billion – a record for a Formula 1 squad – after McLaren were valued at £3.5bn in a change of corporate structure in September.

The Austrian executive, who owns one-third of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a shareholding approximately 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 Group, who each also own one-third of the enterprise.

An official representative stated: "We will be making no official statement on this. The management structure of the team stays unchanged, and each shareholder are dedicated to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in Formula One."

Financial Growth

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

The rise demonstrates the growth in valuations of F1 teams recently as a consequence of the increasing appeal of the sport globally.

This was also seen in the box-office performance of the F1 movie starring Brad Pitt, which debuted last summer and earned more than $630m (£458 million) at cinemas worldwide.

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

Current Standings

The Mercedes team are runner-up in the team standings, trailing McLaren Racing, with three races remaining this season.

Their lead driver British driver George Russell has won 2 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 Racing's Max Verstappen.

Mercedes secured a record eight straight constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.