Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to offload a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
The deal values the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – after McLaren were valued at £3.5 billion in a change of corporate structure last September.
Wolff, who owns a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a shareholding approximately 5%.
The 53-year-old will remain as team boss and CEO should the deal proceed.
Ownership Breakdown
The other shareholders in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos, who both hold a third of the enterprise.
A Mercedes spokesperson said: "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 the ongoing success of the brand in F1."
Financial Increase
This arrangement would represent a substantial rise in value of the Mercedes team since Ineos bought its stake for £208m in 2022.
The rise reflects the expansion in market values of F1 teams recently as a consequence of the increasing appeal of the sport around the world.
This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film featuring Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and has grossed more than $630 million (£458 million) at the box office.
The film represents Pitt's most successful film and the most successful sports film ever released.
Present Performance
The Mercedes team are second in the constructors' championship, behind McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix left in the current championship.
Mercedes' primary racer George Russell has won two of the 21 races this year and is in fourth place in the drivers' championship behind McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes secured a record eight straight constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.
