Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is in advanced talks to sell part of his ownership stake in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
The deal values the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for an F1 team – following McLaren were valued at £3.5 billion in a change of ownership structure last September.
Wolff, who holds a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, plans to divest a shareholding approximately 5%.
The 53-year-old will remain as team boss and chief executive officer if the sale goes through.
Ownership Breakdown
The other shareholders in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes-Benz and industrial group Ineos, who both hold one-third of the company.
A Mercedes spokesperson stated: "We will be making no official statement on the matter. The governance of the team will remain unaltered, and all three partners are fully committed to the ongoing success of the brand in Formula One."
Valuation Growth
This arrangement signifies a substantial rise in value of Mercedes F1 after Ineos acquired its stake for £208 million in 2022.
This surge reflects the expansion in valuations of Formula 1 outfits in the past few years as a consequence of the growing popularity of Formula 1 around the world.
This was also seen in the success of the Formula 1 film starring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which debuted last summer and earned more than $630 million (£458 million) at the box office.
The film represents Pitt's most successful movie and the highest-earning sports movie to date.
Present Performance
Mercedes are second in the team standings, trailing McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix remaining this season.
Mercedes' primary racer British driver George Russell has won two of the 21 grands prix so far and is in fourth place in the drivers' championship after McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
The team won a unprecedented eight straight constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.
