Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is engaged in advanced talks to offload a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
This transaction values the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for an F1 team – after the McLaren team were valued at £3.5bn in an adjustment to corporate structure last September.
Wolff, who owns a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, plans to divest a stake approximately 5%.
Wolff, aged 53 will remain as team boss and CEO should the deal proceed.
Ownership Structure
The other shareholders in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes-Benz and industrial group Ineos Group, who both hold one-third of the enterprise.
An official representative said: "We are providing no official statement on this. The governance of Mercedes F1 stays unchanged, and each shareholder are dedicated to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in Formula One."
Valuation Growth
The deal signifies a substantial rise in value of the Mercedes team after Ineos acquired its stake for £208m in 2022.
This surge demonstrates the growth in market values of F1 teams recently due to the growing popularity of the sport globally.
This trend was evident with the success of the F1 movie starring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released last summer and earned over $630 million (£458 million) at the box office.
The film represents the actor's top-grossing movie and the most successful sports movie to date.
Present Standings
The Mercedes team are runner-up in the constructors' championship, trailing McLaren Racing, with three races remaining this season.
Mercedes' primary racer British driver George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 races this year and is fourth in the drivers' championship behind McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
The team secured a record eight straight constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.
