Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to sell a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
The deal values the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – following McLaren was appraised at £3.5bn in an adjustment to ownership structure last September.
The Austrian executive, who owns a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, plans to divest a shareholding approximately 5%.
Wolff, aged 53 would stay on as team principal and chief executive officer should the deal proceed.
Shareholder Breakdown
The other shareholders in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos Group, who both hold one-third of the company.
An official representative said: "We will be making no comment on this. The management structure of Mercedes F1 will remain unaltered, and all three partners are dedicated to continued achievements of the brand in Formula One."
Valuation Increase
The deal signifies a significant increase in value of the Mercedes team after Ineos Group bought its share for £208m in 2022.
The rise demonstrates the growth in valuations of F1 teams in the past few years due to the increasing appeal of the sport around the world.
This was also seen in the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film starring Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and earned over $630m (£458m) at cinemas worldwide.
It is Pitt's most successful film and the most successful sports film ever released.
Current Performance
The Mercedes team are second in the team standings, trailing McLaren Racing, with three races remaining this season.
Their lead driver George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 grands prix so far and is fourth in the individual standings after McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes secured a record eight consecutive team titles and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.
