Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is in advanced talks to sell a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
The deal values Mercedes at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for an F1 team – after McLaren was appraised at £3.5bn in an adjustment to ownership structure in September.
Wolff, who holds a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, plans to divest a shareholding in the region of 5%.
Wolff, aged 53 would stay on as team principal and chief executive officer if the sale goes through.
Shareholder Breakdown
The other shareholders in the team are Mercedes-Benz and industrial group Ineos Group, who both hold a third of the company.
A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We are providing no official statement on the matter. The management structure of the team will remain unchanged, and each shareholder are dedicated to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in Formula One."
Valuation Increase
This arrangement would represent a significant increase in worth of Mercedes F1 since Ineos acquired its share for £208 million in 2022.
This surge demonstrates the expansion in valuations of F1 teams in the past few years as a consequence of the growing popularity of Formula 1 globally.
This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film starring Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and earned more than $630m (£458m) at cinemas worldwide.
The film represents Pitt's most successful film and the highest-earning sports movie ever released.
Present Performance
Mercedes are second in the team standings, behind McLaren Racing, with three races left in the current championship.
Their lead driver George Russell has secured victory in 2 of the 21 races this year and is in fourth place in the drivers' championship behind McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes secured a unprecedented eight straight constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, from 2014 and 2021.
