Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to offload a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
This transaction estimates the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – a record for an F1 team – after McLaren was appraised at £3.5bn in a change of ownership structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who holds a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a shareholding in the region of five percent.
Wolff, aged 53 would stay on as team boss and CEO should the deal proceed.
Shareholder Breakdown
The other shareholders in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who both hold one-third of the enterprise.
An official representative stated: "We will be making no official statement on the matter. The management structure of Mercedes F1 will remain unaltered, and all three partners are fully committed to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in F1."
Financial Growth
The deal would represent a substantial rise in value of the Mercedes team since Ineos acquired its stake for £208m in 2022.
The rise demonstrates the expansion in valuations of Formula 1 outfits recently due to the increasing appeal of the sport around the world.
This trend was evident with the success of the Formula 1 film starring Brad Pitt, which debuted last summer and has grossed over $630m (£458m) at cinemas worldwide.
The film represents the actor's top-grossing film and the highest-earning sports movie to date.
Current Performance
The Mercedes team are runner-up in the constructors' championship, trailing McLaren, with three races left in the current championship.
Their lead driver British driver George Russell has secured victory in 2 of the 21 races this year and is in fourth place in the individual standings after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes won a unprecedented eight consecutive constructors' championships and seven driver championships, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, from 2014 to 2021.
