Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is in final negotiations to offload a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
This transaction values Mercedes at £4.6 billion – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – after the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5 billion in an adjustment to corporate structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who owns a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, plans to divest a stake approximately 5%.
The 53-year-old would stay on as team boss and chief executive officer if the sale goes through.
Ownership Breakdown
Remaining partners in the team are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos, who both hold a third of the company.
An official representative stated: "We are providing no official statement on the matter. The management structure of Mercedes F1 stays unaltered, and all three partners are fully committed to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in F1."
Valuation Increase
The deal would represent a substantial rise in worth of Mercedes F1 since Ineos Group acquired its stake for £208 million in 2022.
The rise reflects the growth in market values of Formula 1 outfits in the past few years due to the increasing appeal of Formula 1 around the world.
This was also seen in the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film featuring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released last summer and has grossed more than $630m (£458 million) at the box office.
It is Pitt's most successful movie and the most successful sports movie to date.
Present Standings
The Mercedes team are runner-up in the team standings, trailing McLaren Racing, with three races left in the current championship.
Mercedes' primary racer George Russell has secured victory in 2 of the 21 grands prix this year and is fourth in the individual standings after McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
The team won a unprecedented eight straight constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, from 2014 and 2021.
