Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to sell a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
This transaction values Mercedes at £4.6 billion – an unprecedented figure for an F1 team – following McLaren were valued at £3.5 billion in an adjustment to ownership structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who owns a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, would sell a stake in the region of five percent.
Wolff, aged 53 would stay on as team principal and CEO should the deal proceed.
Shareholder Structure
Remaining partners in the team are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos, who both hold a third of the company.
A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We are providing no official statement on the matter. The governance of the team will remain unaltered, and each shareholder are dedicated to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in F1."
Valuation Growth
The deal would represent a significant increase in worth of Mercedes F1 since Ineos acquired its stake for £208m in 2022.
This surge reflects the growth in valuations of F1 teams in the past few years due to the growing popularity of the sport globally.
This was also seen in the success of the F1 movie featuring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which debuted last summer and earned over $630 million (£458m) at cinemas worldwide.
It is the actor's top-grossing film and the highest-earning sports movie ever released.
Current Performance
The Mercedes team are runner-up in the constructors' championship, behind McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix left in the current championship.
Mercedes' primary racer George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 grands prix so far and is fourth in the individual standings after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
The team secured a record eight consecutive constructors' championships and seven driver championships, six for Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, from 2014 to 2021.
