Kurtz acquires minority stake in Mercedes F1 team

Toto Wolff has sold 15% of his shareholding in Mercedes to George Kurtz, with the deal making the founder and CEO of cybersecurity company CrowdStrike a co-owner and the team being valued at $6 billion.

Kurtz has made a personal acquisition of the stake, that sees him also become technology advisor. The American billionaire has invested in Wolff’s ownership entity – with the team principal holding an equal-share one third of the Mercedes team alongside Mercedes-Benz and INEOS – and Kurtz will join the team’s strategic steering committee alongside Wolff, Mercedes-Benz chairman Ola Kallenius, and INEOS founder and chairman Sir Jim Ratcliffe.

Wolff’s roles remain unchanged as he will continue as team principal and CEO, with the BBC reporting it is a $300 million stake that has been sold, valuing Mercedes at $6 billion.

“George's background is unusual in its breadth: he's a racer, a loyal sporting ambassador for Mercedes-AMG, and an exceptional entrepreneur,” Wolff said. “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 1.”

CrowdStrike became a global partner of Mercedes’ F1 team in 2019, but the acquisition comes from Kurtz’s personal fortune.

“If you look at sports [valuations] across the globe, they are all up,” the BBC quoted Kurtz as saying. “Formula 1 is really at an inflection point where it is a thriving business. If you're making an investment like this, you believe that the sport is going to grow, F1 is going to grow and the team valuations are going to grow, and you're going to be able to contribute to that growth.”

Mercedes says Kurtz will work in an advisory capacity and support the team's innovation and technology strategy, while also growing the team’s ecosystem in the technology sector both in the United States and globally.