Wolff Sells Mercedes Stake to Kurtz Establishing £6bn Valuation for F1 Team

Mercedes-AMG Petronas is undergoing a major ownership shake-up after Toto Wolff confirmed he is selling a portion of his equity in the team to cybersecurity billionaire George Kurtz. Under the terms reported, Kurtz - already a commercial partner of Mercedes - has agreed to acquire a slice of Wolff’s share, a deal that implies a team valuation in the region of $6 billion. The move underscores just how much Formula 1 franchises have grown in value in recent years.

This is not a takeover. Rather, the deal represents a reallocation of part of Wolff’s roughly one-third holding. He is expected to remain in his role as team principal. But by monetising part of his equity, Wolff appears to be both unlocking liquidity and reshaping the team’s long-term governance structure. For Kurtz, the acquisition converts a commercial partnership into a material ownership stake - aligning his business interests with the team’s competitive and commercial trajectory.

The valuation implied by this transaction confirms that Mercedes is not just a top competitor on the grid; it is a blue-chip sporting asset. The $6 billion figure - considerably higher than team valuations in past decades - reflects a broader transformation across F1: tighter media rights deals, global expansion, surging sponsorship, and the increasing appeal of racing as a platform for brand and technology investors. Under current cost-cap regulations and with rising technological demands, teams are more expensive to run than ever - making outside capital ever more attractive.

For Wolff, slicing off part of his share seems part of a long-term succession and wealth-planning strategy. While he remains intimately involved in team operations, unlocking capital through partial equity sale allows him to diversify investments while maintaining influence. It also provides Mercedes access to fresh capital without diluting strategic alignment among the major stakeholders - namely Wolff, Daimler and INEOS.

For the sport broadly, the deal signals a new normal: constructor stakes may increasingly pass to private tech entrepreneurs and institutional investors who are attracted by F1’s global reach and growth potential. If the Kurtz-Mercedes deal closes, it could set a reference point for future valuations - encouraging further inflows of capital and shifting team ownership models toward hybrid commercial-sporting enterprises rather than traditional, founder-led structures.

As negotiations finalize and the transaction completes, one thing is clear: Mercedes is reinforcing its position not only as a racing powerhouse - but as one of the most valuable assets in modern sport.