Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is in final negotiations to offload a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
The deal estimates Mercedes at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for an F1 team – after the McLaren team were valued at £3.5 billion in an adjustment to corporate structure last September.
The Austrian executive, who holds one-third of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a stake 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 the team are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos, who both hold a third of the enterprise.
A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We will be making no comment on this. The governance of the team will remain unchanged, and all three partners are dedicated to continued achievements of the brand in F1."
Financial Increase
The deal signifies a substantial rise in worth of the Mercedes team since Ineos Group acquired its stake for £208 million in 2022.
This surge reflects the expansion in market values of Formula 1 outfits in the past few years as a consequence of the growing popularity of Formula 1 globally.
This was also seen in the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film featuring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and earned over $630m (£458 million) at the box office.
It is Pitt's most successful film and the highest-earning sports movie to date.
Current Performance
The Mercedes team are runner-up in the team standings, trailing McLaren, with three races left in the current championship.
Mercedes' primary racer British driver George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 races so far and is fourth in the individual standings after McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes secured a record eight straight constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.
