Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to offload part of his shareholding in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
The deal estimates the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – after the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5bn in a change of corporate structure last September.
Wolff, who owns a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, plans to divest a shareholding approximately 5%.
Wolff, aged 53 will remain as team principal and chief executive officer should the deal proceed.
Ownership Structure
Remaining partners in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes-Benz and industrial group Ineos Group, who each also own one-third of the company.
An official representative stated: "We will be making no official statement on this. The management structure of Mercedes F1 stays unchanged, and all three partners are fully committed to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in Formula One."
Financial Increase
The deal signifies a significant increase in value of the Mercedes team since Ineos acquired its share for £208 million in 2022.
This surge reflects the expansion in valuations of F1 teams recently as a consequence of the increasing appeal of Formula 1 around the world.
This was also seen in the box-office performance of the F1 movie featuring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released last summer and has grossed over $630m (£458 million) at the box office.
The film represents Pitt's most successful movie and the most successful sports film ever released.
Current Performance
The Mercedes team are runner-up in the constructors' championship, trailing McLaren Racing, with three races remaining this season.
Their lead driver George Russell has secured victory in 2 of the 21 races so far and is fourth 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 constructors' championships and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.
