Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is in final negotiations to offload part of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
The deal values the Mercedes team at £4.6 billion – a record for a Formula 1 squad – following McLaren was appraised at £3.5 billion in a change of ownership structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who owns one-third of Mercedes F1, plans to divest a shareholding approximately 5%.
The 53-year-old would stay on as team principal and CEO if the sale goes through.
Ownership Breakdown
Remaining partners in the team are Mercedes-Benz and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who both hold one-third of the enterprise.
An official representative stated: "We will be making no comment on this. The governance of the team stays unchanged, and each shareholder are fully committed to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in Formula One."
Valuation Growth
The deal would represent a substantial rise in worth of the Mercedes team since Ineos Group acquired its stake for £208 million in 2022.
This surge reflects the growth in market values of F1 teams recently as a consequence of the increasing appeal of the sport globally.
This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the F1 movie featuring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and has grossed more than $630m (£458 million) at the box office.
It is the actor's top-grossing movie and the highest-earning sports movie ever released.
Current Standings
The Mercedes team are runner-up in the team standings, behind McLaren Racing, with three races left this season.
Their lead driver George Russell has secured victory in 2 of the 21 races this year and is fourth in the individual standings after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
The team won a record eight straight team titles and seven driver championships, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.
