Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is engaged in advanced talks to sell part of his ownership stake in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
The deal values Mercedes at £4.6 billion – a record for an F1 team – following McLaren were valued at £3.5bn in a change of ownership structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who owns a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, plans to divest a stake approximately 5%.
The 53-year-old will remain as team principal and CEO if the sale goes through.
Shareholder Structure
The other shareholders in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes-Benz and chemicals giant Ineos, who each also own one-third of the enterprise.
A Mercedes spokesperson stated: "We are providing no official statement on this. The governance of Mercedes F1 stays unchanged, and all three partners are dedicated to continued achievements of the brand in Formula One."
Valuation Growth
The deal would represent a substantial rise in worth of the Mercedes team since Ineos Group acquired its share for £208m in 2022.
This surge reflects the growth in market values of F1 teams in the past few years as a consequence of the growing popularity of the sport around the world.
This was also seen in the success of the F1 movie starring Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and earned more than $630 million (£458 million) at the box office.
The film represents the actor's top-grossing film and the highest-earning sports movie ever released.
Present Performance
The Mercedes team are second in the team standings, trailing McLaren, with three Grands Prix remaining in the current championship.
Mercedes' primary racer British driver George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 grands prix so far and is in fourth place in the individual standings after McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes secured a record eight consecutive constructors' championships and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, from 2014 to 2021.
