🔗 Share this article Wolff Preparing to Divest Shareholding Pricing Mercedes F1 at £4.6bn Team Principal Wolff has led the Mercedes team to record-breaking achievements in F1 Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is in advanced talks to sell a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes Formula 1 team. This transaction estimates the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – after the McLaren team were valued at £3.5 billion in an adjustment to ownership structure last September. The Austrian executive, who holds a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, plans to divest a shareholding approximately five percent. The 53-year-old would stay on as team principal and chief executive officer if the sale goes through. Ownership Breakdown Remaining partners in the team are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who each also own one-third of the company. An official representative stated: "We will be making no official statement on the matter. The governance of Mercedes F1 stays unaltered, and all three partners are dedicated to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in F1." Valuation Increase The deal would represent a significant increase in worth of Mercedes F1 since Ineos acquired its stake for £208 million in 2022. The rise demonstrates the growth in market values of F1 teams in the past few years as a consequence of the increasing appeal of Formula 1 around the world. This was also seen in the box-office performance of the F1 movie starring Brad Pitt, which was released last summer and earned over $630m (£458 million) at cinemas worldwide. It is the actor's top-grossing movie and the most successful sports movie to date. Current Performance Mercedes are runner-up in the team standings, trailing McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix remaining in the current championship. Mercedes' primary racer British driver George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 races so far and is fourth in the individual standings behind McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen. The team won a unprecedented eight consecutive constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.