Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to offload a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
This transaction values the Mercedes team at £4.6 billion – an unprecedented figure for an F1 team – following McLaren were valued at £3.5 billion in a change of ownership structure in September.
Wolff, who owns a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, plans to divest a shareholding approximately five percent.
Wolff, aged 53 will remain as team boss and CEO if the sale goes through.
Shareholder Structure
The other shareholders in the team are Mercedes-Benz and chemicals giant Ineos, who each also own one-third of the enterprise.
A Mercedes spokesperson stated: "We are providing no comment on this. The management structure of Mercedes F1 stays unchanged, and each shareholder are fully committed to continued achievements of the brand in F1."
Valuation Growth
This arrangement signifies a substantial rise in value of the Mercedes team since Ineos Group bought its stake for £208m in 2022.
This surge demonstrates the growth in valuations of F1 teams in the past few years due to the increasing appeal of Formula 1 globally.
This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the F1 movie starring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which debuted last summer and has grossed over $630m (£458 million) at cinemas worldwide.
It is the actor's top-grossing movie and the highest-earning sports film to date.
Current Performance
The Mercedes team are runner-up in the team standings, trailing McLaren Racing, with three races left this season.
Mercedes' primary racer British driver George Russell has secured victory in two 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.
The team 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.
