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Mercedes Formula 1 chief executive Toto Wolff is in advanced talks to sell part of his stake to CrowdStrike’s George Kurtz, in a deal that would give the F1 team a record $6bn valuation and underscore the sport’s commercial success under US ownership.

Kurtz is in talks over taking a stake of about 5 per cent in the Mercedes F1 team, said two people with knowledge of the matter. The co-founder and chief executive of the cyber security company is known for his love of car racing, having competed in hundreds of races.

CrowdStrike and Mercedes F1 are long-standing commercial partners, with the former’s logo featuring prominently on the team’s cars and driver race suits.

CrowdStrike was approached for comment. Mercedes F1 and Wolff declined to comment.

The deal under discussion would involve Wolff bringing Kurtz into the holding company that owns his 33 per cent stake in the Mercedes F1 team, said a person with knowledge of the matter.

It would result in the outside investor taking a stake of about 5 per cent in the team, the person said. Wolff would remain as chief executive and team principal.

Mercedes F1 said: “The governance of the team will remain unchanged, and all three partners [Mercedes-Benz, Toto and Ineos] are fully committed to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in Formula 1.”

Wolff, German carmaker Mercedes-Benz and Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s petrochemicals company Ineos each own a third of the team.

Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix, the company that operates the F1 team, reported revenues of £636mn in 2024, up from £546mn the previous year. Pre-tax profit rose from £115mn to £163mn in the same timeframe. The company proposed a final dividend for the year of £125mn.

The deal for Wolff’s stake would represent a significant increase in valuation since January 2022, when Ineos paid £208mn for its 33 per cent stake. The potential stake sale was first reported by Sportico without identifying the buyer.

A $6bn valuation would set a high-water mark for an F1 team.

In September the Middle Eastern backers of McLaren Racing — Bahrain’s sovereign wealth fund Mumtalakat and Abu Dhabi investment group CYVN Holdings — took full ownership of the team in a deal valuing it at more than £3bn. That valuation was more than five times the £560mn ascribed to McLaren in a December 2020 fundraising.

Motor racing teams have soared in value since John Malone’s Liberty Media took over F1 in 2017 and successfully attracted a new generation of fans.

Netflix documentary series Drive to Survive was a global hit, particularly in the US, and catapulted Wolff and other F1 chiefs into the spotlight.

Since joining Mercedes in 2013, Wolff has led the team to seven drivers’ championships and eight constructors’ titles. Sir Lewis Hamilton delivered the team’s success on the track for much of Wolff’s reign, but the British driver departed for Italian rival Ferrari this year after the Mercedes car was beset with problems.

Mercedes sits second in this season’s constructors’ championship, which has already been won by McLaren with three races remaining. Mercedes drivers George Russell and Kimi Antonelli sit fourth and seventh in the drivers’ standings respectively.

Wolff was among the executive producers on F1 The Movie, which was released by Apple earlier this year and grossed more than $630mn at the box office.

Additional reporting by Kieran Smith