Mercedes in talks to sell minority F1 stake

Toto Wolff is in advanced talks to sell a minority stake in the Mercedes Formula 1 team to George Kurtz, CEO of cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike, in a deal that would value the team at about $6 billion, the Financial Times and other outlets report. Under the current ownership structure, Mercedes-Benz, Wolff and Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s INEOS each hold roughly one-third of the team; the incoming investor is reported to take a mid-single-digit stake (around 5%), with Wolff remaining as team principal and head of Mercedes motorsport.

Mercedes issued a short statement saying team governance will remain unchanged and that all three partners remain committed to the team’s success. No formal comments have been made by Wolff, Kurtz or INEOS. CrowdStrike is already a team partner, and Kurtz — an amateur sportscar racer who has competed at Le Mans — would join as both investor and high-profile backer.

The proposed transaction would set a record valuation for a Formula 1 team, outstripping recent benchmarks such as McLaren’s valuation after its sale last year and reflecting a surge in team values driven by F1’s global popularity and media exposure. Industry sources note that team valuations have risen sharply from eras when ownership transfers were nominal — exemplified by past sales of struggling teams for symbolic sums — to the current multi‑billion‑dollar market where celebrity and corporate investors take equity stakes.

Details of the talks remain unconfirmed and subject to change; reports say Wolff plans to remain in his leadership roles while diluting part of his share. Analysts expect the deal, if completed, to intensify interest from technology and private-equity investors in F1 assets and to prompt fresh scrutiny of governance, commercial strategy and the role of strategic partners in top teams. Mercedes meanwhile sit among the front-running outfits on the sporting side, and the potential injection of new capital would come amid an increasingly competitive constructor landscape and rising valuations across the sport. Investigations and official disclosures from the parties will determine final terms and the precise impact on ownership and long-term planning.