Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to sell part of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
The deal estimates Mercedes at £4.6 billion – a record for an F1 team – after the McLaren team were valued at £3.5bn in a change of ownership structure last September.
The Austrian executive, who holds a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a shareholding approximately five percent.
The 53-year-old would stay on as team boss and chief executive officer should the deal proceed.
Ownership Structure
The other shareholders in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos Group, who each also own one-third of the enterprise.
An official representative stated: "We will be making no official statement on the matter. The governance of Mercedes F1 stays unaltered, and each shareholder are dedicated to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in Formula One."
Valuation Increase
This arrangement would represent a significant increase in worth of the Mercedes team since Ineos Group bought its share for £208 million in 2022.
This surge demonstrates the growth in market values of F1 teams in the past few years as a consequence of the increasing appeal of the sport globally.
This was also seen in the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film featuring Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and has grossed over $630m (£458 million) at cinemas worldwide.
It is Pitt's most successful movie and the most successful sports movie ever released.
Current Standings
Mercedes are runner-up in the constructors' championship, trailing McLaren, with three races remaining in the current championship.
Their lead driver George Russell has won two of the 21 grands prix so far and is fourth in the drivers' championship behind McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull'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, from 2014 to 2021.
