🔗 Share this article

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

This transaction estimates the Mercedes team at £4.6 billion – a record for a Formula 1 squad – following the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5 billion in an adjustment to ownership structure last September.

Wolff, who holds a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a shareholding in the region of 5%.

The 53-year-old would stay on as team principal and chief executive officer if the sale goes through.

Shareholder Structure

The other shareholders in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes-Benz and chemicals giant Ineos, who each also own one-third of the enterprise.

An official representative stated: "We will be making no comment on this. The governance of the team stays unaltered, and each shareholder are fully committed to the ongoing success of the brand in Formula One."

Valuation Growth

The deal signifies 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 F1 teams in the past few years due to the growing popularity of Formula 1 globally.

This was also seen in the success of the Formula 1 film featuring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released last summer and earned over $630m (£458m) at cinemas worldwide.

The film represents the actor's top-grossing movie and the highest-earning sports movie ever released.

Present Standings

The Mercedes team are runner-up in the constructors' championship, trailing McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix remaining this season.

Their lead driver George Russell has secured victory in 2 of the 21 races so far 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 consecutive constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.