Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is engaged in advanced talks to offload part of his ownership stake in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
This transaction values the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for an F1 team – after the McLaren team were valued at £3.5bn in an adjustment to corporate structure last September.
Wolff, who holds a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a stake in the region of five percent.
The 53-year-old will remain as team boss and chief executive officer if the sale goes through.
Shareholder Structure
Remaining partners in the team are Mercedes-Benz and industrial group Ineos, who each also own a third of the company.
An official representative stated: "We are providing no official statement on the matter. The governance of Mercedes F1 stays unchanged, and all three partners are fully committed to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in Formula One."
Financial Growth
The deal would represent a substantial rise in value of the Mercedes team after Ineos acquired its share for £208m in 2022.
The rise reflects the growth in valuations of F1 teams recently as a consequence of the increasing appeal of Formula 1 around the world.
This trend was evident with the success of the Formula 1 film featuring Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and has grossed more than $630m (£458 million) at the box office.
The film represents the actor's top-grossing movie and the most successful sports movie ever released.
Present Standings
Mercedes are second in the constructors' championship, trailing McLaren, with three races remaining in the current championship.
Mercedes' primary racer British driver George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 grands prix this year 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 drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.
