Mercedes pull out of talks to buy stake in Alpine F1 team

Current Mercedes has withdrawn its bid to purchase a stake in the French Formula 1 team Alpine due to the high price of the offered 24% share.

Photo by Alastair Staley

Formula 1 has become increasingly popular in recent years, raising the value of racing teams and attracting world-famous brands that want to be part of the F1 phenomenon. That is why Alpine recently announced a new title sponsor for the 2027 season: Gucci.

Following the rising value of Formula 1 teams, Dorino Capital, which owns a 24% stake in Alpine, decided to put its share up for sale. Among the interested parties were former Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Horner and Mercedes.

According to BBC, Mercedes has now withdrawn from negotiations to acquire the 24% stake. The reason is that Dorino Capital purchased the share three years ago for $230 million, but is now reportedly asking for $720 million. This would value the entire team at approximately $3 billion.

Mercedes considers that valuation too high and reportedly believes the team's value should be between $1.6 billion and $1.8 billion.

According to available information, both Mercedes and Alpine declined to comment on the situation.

It is also worth noting that Mercedes currently supplies Alpine with its engines and gearboxes. Therefore, if the negotiations had resulted in an agreement, it would have created a particularly interesting relationship between the two parties.