🔗 Share this article

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

The deal values the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – after McLaren were valued at £3.5bn in an adjustment to ownership structure last September.

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

The 53-year-old will remain as team boss and chief executive officer if the sale goes through.

Shareholder Breakdown

Remaining partners in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes-Benz and industrial group Ineos, who both hold one-third of the enterprise.

A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We are providing no comment on the matter. The governance of the team stays unchanged, and all three partners are dedicated to continued achievements of the brand in F1."

Financial Increase

The deal would represent a substantial rise in worth of the Mercedes team after Ineos bought its share for £208 million in 2022.

This surge demonstrates the growth in valuations of F1 teams recently as a consequence of the growing popularity of Formula 1 around the world.

This was also seen in the success of the Formula 1 film starring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and has grossed over $630m (£458 million) at the box office.

The film represents Pitt's most successful movie and the highest-earning sports movie ever released.

Present Performance

Mercedes are second in the constructors' championship, trailing McLaren, with three races left this season.

Their lead driver British driver George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 races so far and is fourth in the individual standings after McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.

Mercedes won a record eight consecutive team titles and seven driver championships, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, from 2014 to 2021.