CrowdStrike founder Kurtz buys into Mercedes F1 team

LONDON :CrowdStrike founder and chief executive George Kurtz has bought into the Mercedes Formula One team by taking 15 per cent of the one-third stake held by principal Toto Wolff, both parties announced on Thursday.

No financial details were given for the personal acquisition but media reports last week said the deal valued the former champions at a record $6 billion.

Austrian Wolff, Mercedes-Benz and Jim Ratcliffe's petrochemicals giant Ineos each hold one-third stakes and the governance and leadership of the team will not be affected by Thursday's deal.

American Kurtz, who has competed at Le Mans and other endurance events in sportscars, will become the team's technology adviser and joins the strategic steering committee alongside Wolff, Mercedes-Benz chairman Ola Kaellenius and Ineos founder Ratcliffe.

He said all the other shareholders were fully aware of the transaction as it unfolded. 

Cybersecurity company CrowdStrike has been a team partner since 2019 with branding on the car and apparel.

$6 BILLION TEAM VALUATION EXPECTED TO GROW

Kurtz told reporters in a video call that the $6 billion valuation of the team was in line with the market and likely to grow with a young, fresh demographic attracted to the sport.

"We think there's a great opportunity to grow the sport, particularly in the U.S. and particularly within the technology space where we can bring more sponsors in," he said.

"I know the U.S. market, I know the technology players and technology has been and will continue to be a big part of this sport going into the future and the folks who can unlock technology will have the best performance advantage."

Mercedes won eight constructors' titles in a row from 2014-21 and are currently second overall behind champions