Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is engaged in advanced talks to offload part of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
The deal values the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – after McLaren were valued at £3.5bn in a change of corporate structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who owns a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, would sell a shareholding approximately 5%.
The 53-year-old will remain as team boss and CEO should the deal proceed.
Ownership Structure
Remaining partners in the team are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos, who both hold one-third of the company.
A Mercedes spokesperson stated: "We are providing no official statement on the matter. The management structure of Mercedes F1 will remain unchanged, and each shareholder are fully committed to continued achievements of the brand in F1."
Financial Growth
This arrangement signifies a substantial rise in value of Mercedes F1 after Ineos Group bought its share for £208m in 2022.
The rise demonstrates the growth in valuations of F1 teams in the past few years as a consequence of the increasing appeal of the sport around the world.
This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film starring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and earned more than $630 million (£458m) at the box office.
It is Pitt's most successful film and the most successful sports movie to date.
Present Performance
Mercedes are second in the constructors' championship, behind McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix remaining in the current championship.
Their lead driver British driver George Russell has won two of the 21 races so far and is in fourth place in the individual standings behind McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
The team secured a unprecedented eight consecutive constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, from 2014 to 2021.
