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 an F1 team – following the McLaren team were valued at £3.5 billion in a change of ownership structure last September.
The Austrian executive, who owns a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, would sell a shareholding approximately five percent.
Wolff, aged 53 would stay on as team boss and chief executive officer if the sale goes through.
Shareholder Breakdown
The other shareholders in the team are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who each also own a third of the company.
An official representative said: "We are providing no official statement on this. The management structure of Mercedes F1 will remain unaltered, and all three partners are fully committed to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in F1."
Valuation Growth
This arrangement would represent a significant increase in value of Mercedes F1 since Ineos bought its stake for £208m in 2022.
The rise demonstrates the growth in valuations of F1 teams in the past few years due to the increasing appeal of the sport globally.
This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the F1 movie featuring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and has grossed more than $630 million (£458 million) at cinemas worldwide.
It is the actor's top-grossing movie and the most successful sports film to date.
Present Standings
The Mercedes team are runner-up in the team standings, trailing McLaren, with three races remaining in the current championship.
Their lead driver British driver George Russell has won 2 of the 21 races so far and is in fourth place in the drivers' championship behind McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
The team secured a unprecedented eight consecutive team titles and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.
