🔗 Share this article Toto Wolff Preparing to Divest Stake Pricing Mercedes Formula 1 Team at £4.6 Billion Team Principal Wolff has led Mercedes to historic success in Formula 1 Toto Wolff is in final negotiations to offload part of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team. This transaction values the Mercedes team at £4.6 billion – an unprecedented figure for an F1 team – after McLaren were valued at £3.5bn in an adjustment to corporate structure in September. The Austrian executive, who holds one-third of the Mercedes F1 operation, plans to divest a shareholding in the region of five percent. Wolff, aged 53 will remain as team principal and chief executive officer should the deal proceed. Shareholder Structure Remaining partners in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes-Benz and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who each also own a third of the enterprise. An official representative stated: "We will be making no comment on the matter. The management structure of the team stays unchanged, and all three partners are fully committed to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in Formula One." Valuation Increase The deal signifies a substantial rise in value of the Mercedes team since Ineos acquired its stake for £208 million in 2022. This surge reflects the growth in market values of F1 teams in the past few years due to the growing popularity of the sport around the world. This was also seen in the box-office performance of the F1 movie starring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and earned more than $630 million (£458m) at cinemas worldwide. It is the actor's top-grossing movie and the highest-earning sports film ever released. Current Performance Mercedes are second in the team standings, trailing McLaren Racing, with three races left in the current championship. Mercedes' primary racer British driver George Russell has secured victory in 2 of the 21 grands prix so far and is in fourth place in the individual standings behind McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen. The team secured a record eight consecutive team titles and seven drivers' titles, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.