Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to sell a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
This transaction values the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – a record for a Formula 1 squad – following the McLaren team were valued at £3.5 billion in an adjustment to ownership structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who owns one-third of Mercedes F1, would sell a stake approximately 5%.
Wolff, aged 53 will remain as team principal and CEO should the deal proceed.
Shareholder Breakdown
Remaining partners in the team are Mercedes-Benz and industrial group Ineos, who both hold one-third of the company.
A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We are providing no comment on the matter. The management structure of the team stays unchanged, and all three partners are dedicated to the ongoing success of the brand in F1."
Valuation Growth
This arrangement would represent a significant increase in value of Mercedes F1 after Ineos Group bought its share for £208 million in 2022.
This surge reflects the growth in valuations of F1 teams in the past few years due to the increasing appeal of the sport globally.
This was also seen in the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film featuring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released last summer and earned over $630m (£458 million) at cinemas worldwide.
It is the actor's top-grossing movie and the highest-earning sports movie ever released.
Present Standings
The Mercedes team are runner-up in the team standings, trailing McLaren, with three Grands Prix left in the current championship.
Their lead driver George Russell has won two of the 21 races this year and is fourth in the drivers' championship behind 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 for Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.
