Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is engaged in advanced talks to sell a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
The deal estimates the Mercedes team at £4.6 billion – a record for an F1 team – following the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5bn in an adjustment to corporate structure in September.
Wolff, who owns one-third of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a stake approximately five percent.
The 53-year-old will remain as team boss 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 each also own one-third of the enterprise.
A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We are providing no comment on the matter. The management structure of the team stays unchanged, and all three partners are fully committed to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in F1."
Financial Growth
The deal would represent a significant increase in value of the Mercedes team after Ineos bought its share for £208 million in 2022.
This surge demonstrates the growth in valuations of F1 teams in the past few years due to the growing popularity of Formula 1 around the world.
This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the F1 movie featuring Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and earned over $630m (£458m) at cinemas worldwide.
The film represents Pitt's most successful film and the highest-earning sports film to date.
Present Standings
The Mercedes team are runner-up in the constructors' championship, trailing McLaren, with three races left this season.
Their lead driver British driver George Russell has won 2 of the 21 races so far and is fourth in the drivers' championship after McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes secured a record eight straight team titles and seven driver championships, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.
