Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to offload a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
The deal values the Mercedes team at £4.6 billion – a record for an F1 team – after the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5 billion in an adjustment to corporate structure last September.
The Austrian executive, who owns a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a shareholding approximately 5%.
The 53-year-old will remain as team principal and CEO if the sale goes through.
Shareholder Breakdown
The other shareholders in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes-Benz and industrial group Ineos, who both hold one-third of the enterprise.
A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We will be making no official statement on this. The governance of Mercedes F1 stays unaltered, and all three partners are dedicated to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in Formula One."
Valuation Increase
This arrangement would represent a significant increase in value of Mercedes F1 since Ineos acquired its share for £208m in 2022.
This surge demonstrates the growth in valuations of Formula 1 outfits recently due to 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 debuted in summer 2023 and has grossed more than $630 million (£458 million) at cinemas worldwide.
It is Pitt's most successful movie and the most successful sports movie ever released.
Current Performance
Mercedes are runner-up in the team standings, trailing McLaren, with three Grands Prix left this season.
Their lead driver British driver George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 grands prix so far and is fourth in the individual standings after McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes secured a record eight consecutive constructors' championships and seven driver championships, six for Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, from 2014 and 2021.
