Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is in final negotiations to offload a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
The deal values Mercedes at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for an F1 team – after the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5bn in a change of corporate structure in September.
Wolff, who holds a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, plans to divest a stake approximately five percent.
Wolff, aged 53 would stay on as team boss and chief executive officer if the sale goes through.
Ownership Structure
The other shareholders in the team are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos, who each also own one-third of the enterprise.
An official representative said: "We are providing no official statement on this. The governance of Mercedes F1 will remain unaltered, and each shareholder are dedicated to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in Formula One."
Valuation Growth
The deal signifies a significant increase in value of the Mercedes team after Ineos bought its share for £208m in 2022.
This surge reflects the expansion in valuations of Formula 1 outfits recently due to the increasing appeal of the sport around the world.
This was also seen in the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film featuring Brad Pitt, which debuted last summer 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 film ever released.
Current Standings
The Mercedes team are second in the constructors' championship, trailing McLaren, with three races left in the current championship.
Their lead driver British driver George Russell has won 2 of the 21 grands prix this year and is fourth in the individual standings after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes won a record eight straight team titles and seven driver championships, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.
