Toto Wolff Preparing to Sell Shareholding Valuing Mercedes F1 at £4.6bn

Toto Wolff is in final negotiations to offload part of his ownership stake in the Mercedes F1 outfit.

The deal values Mercedes at £4.6 billion – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – following McLaren was appraised at £3.5bn in an adjustment to ownership structure in September.

Wolff, who holds a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, plans to divest a stake approximately 5%.

Wolff, aged 53 will remain as team principal and CEO if the sale goes through.

Shareholder Breakdown

Remaining partners in the team are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who each also own a third of the company.

A Mercedes spokesperson stated: "We are providing no comment on the matter. The management structure of Mercedes F1 stays unaltered, and each shareholder are dedicated to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in F1."

Financial Increase

The deal would represent a significant increase in worth of the Mercedes team after Ineos acquired its share for £208 million in 2022.

The rise reflects the expansion in market values of F1 teams in the past few years as a consequence of the growing popularity of the sport around the world.

This trend was evident with the success of the Formula 1 film starring Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and has grossed more than $630 million (£458m) at cinemas worldwide.

It is Pitt's most successful movie and the most successful sports movie ever released.

Current Performance

Mercedes are second in the constructors' championship, behind McLaren, with three Grands Prix remaining in the current championship.

Mercedes' primary racer George Russell has secured victory in 2 of the 21 grands prix this year and is in fourth place in the drivers' championship behind McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.

The team secured a unprecedented eight straight team titles and seven drivers' titles, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.