Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is in final negotiations to sell part of his ownership stake in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
This transaction estimates Mercedes at £4.6bn – a record for a Formula 1 squad – after the McLaren team were valued at £3.5bn in an adjustment to corporate structure last September.
The Austrian executive, who holds a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a stake in the region of five percent.
The 53-year-old will remain as team principal and chief executive officer should the deal proceed.
Ownership Breakdown
Remaining partners in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos, who each also own a third of the enterprise.
An official representative stated: "We will be making no official statement on this. The governance of the team will remain unchanged, and all three partners are fully committed to the ongoing success of the brand in F1."
Valuation Growth
The deal would represent a substantial rise in worth of Mercedes F1 after Ineos bought its share for £208 million in 2022.
This surge reflects the expansion in valuations 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 debuted last summer and has grossed more than $630 million (£458m) at cinemas worldwide.
It is Pitt's most successful movie and the highest-earning sports movie ever released.
Current Performance
Mercedes are runner-up in the team standings, behind McLaren Racing, with three races remaining in the current championship.
Their lead driver George Russell has secured victory in 2 of the 21 grands prix this year and is in fourth place in the individual standings behind McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes won a unprecedented eight straight team titles and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.
