Toto Wolff sells major slice of Mercedes F1 stake to US billionaire

Toto Wolff has sold 15 per cent of his stake in the Mercedes F1 team.

On Thursday at the Las Vegas Grand Prix, Mercedes announced that American billionaire George Kurtz had purchased the stake.

Kurtz is the founder of CrowdStrike — a cybersecurity firm that has been a Mercedes partner since 2019.

He has bought 15 per cent of the ownership entity held by Wolff.

Mercedes-Benz and Ineos hold an equal one-third shareholding in the team.

Wolff will remain Mercedes F1 team principal and CEO, while Kurtz has been appointed as their technology advisor.

Speaking of the news, Wolff said in a press release: “George’s background is unusual in its breadth: he’s a racer, a loyal sporting ambassador for Mercedes-AMG, and an exceptional entrepreneur.

“He understands both the demands of racing and the realities of building and scaling technology businesses.

“That combination brings specific insight that is increasingly relevant to the future of Formula One.”

Kurtz added: “Winning in racing and cybersecurity requires speed, precision, and innovation. Milliseconds matter. Execution counts. Data wins.

“Technology is reshaping competitive advantage and human capability everywhere, including motorsport. I’m excited to help the team securely accelerate forward.”

Mercedes are on course to finish second in the 2025 F1 constructors’ championship.

Ahead of this weekend’s action, Mercedes are 32 points ahead of Red Bull.

They are expecting another strong weekend in Las Vegas, with the cool track temperatures and long straights likely to suit the W16.

George Russell stormed to victory in Vegas last year, finishing ahead of Lewis Hamilton.

Russell has already taken two wins this year — Canada and Singapore.

Kimi Antonelli is still waiting for his first F1 grand prix win but has shown notable improvement in recent races, securing second in Brazil.