Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is in final negotiations to sell a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
The deal values the Mercedes team 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 ownership structure in September.
Wolff, who holds one-third of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a shareholding in the region of 5%.
The 53-year-old would stay on as team boss and CEO if the sale goes through.
Ownership Structure
Remaining partners in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes-Benz and industrial group Ineos, who each also own one-third of the enterprise.
An official representative said: "We will be making no comment on this. The management structure of the team stays unaltered, and each shareholder are fully committed to the ongoing success of the brand in F1."
Financial Increase
This arrangement would represent a substantial rise in worth of Mercedes F1 since Ineos Group bought its share for £208m in 2022.
The rise reflects the expansion in market values of F1 teams in the past few years as a consequence of the growing popularity of the sport globally.
This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the F1 movie starring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and has grossed more than $630 million (£458 million) at the box office.
It is Pitt's most successful film and the most successful sports movie ever released.
Present Performance
Mercedes are second in the team standings, trailing McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix left this season.
Their lead driver George Russell has won two of the 21 races this year and is fourth in the individual standings after McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes won a record eight consecutive constructors' championships and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.
