Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to sell 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 – following McLaren was appraised at £3.5 billion in a change of corporate structure last September.
The Austrian executive, who owns one-third of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a shareholding approximately five percent.
The 53-year-old would stay on as team boss and CEO if the sale goes through.
Ownership Breakdown
The other shareholders in the team are Mercedes-Benz and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who both hold a third of the company.
An official representative stated: "We are providing no official statement on this. The management structure of the team will remain unaltered, and all three partners are dedicated to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in F1."
Financial Growth
This arrangement would represent a substantial rise in worth of the Mercedes team since Ineos Group bought its stake for £208 million in 2022.
The rise reflects the expansion in market values of F1 teams in the past few years due to the increasing appeal of the sport globally.
This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film starring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released last summer and earned over $630m (£458m) at the box office.
It is the actor's top-grossing film and the highest-earning sports movie ever released.
Present Performance
Mercedes are second in the constructors' championship, trailing McLaren Racing, with three races left this season.
Mercedes' primary racer British driver George Russell has won two of the 21 grands prix 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.
The team secured a unprecedented eight straight constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.
