Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is in final negotiations to sell a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
This transaction estimates the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – a record for a Formula 1 squad – following McLaren was appraised at £3.5 billion in a change of corporate structure last September.
The Austrian executive, who owns one-third of Mercedes F1, would sell a stake approximately 5%.
Wolff, aged 53 would stay on as team principal and chief executive officer should the deal proceed.
Ownership Breakdown
The other shareholders in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes-Benz and chemicals giant Ineos, who each also own a third of the enterprise.
A Mercedes spokesperson stated: "We are providing no official statement on this. The governance of the team will remain unchanged, and each shareholder are dedicated to continued achievements of the brand in F1."
Financial Increase
This arrangement signifies a significant increase in worth of the Mercedes team after Ineos bought its stake for £208 million in 2022.
The rise demonstrates the expansion in market values of Formula 1 outfits in the past few years as a consequence of the growing popularity of Formula 1 around the world.
This trend was evident with the success of the Formula 1 film featuring Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and has grossed over $630 million (£458 million) at the box office.
It is Pitt's most successful movie and the most successful sports movie to date.
Present Performance
The Mercedes team are runner-up in the team standings, trailing McLaren, with three races left this season.
Mercedes' primary racer George Russell has won two of the 21 races so far and is in fourth place in the drivers' championship behind McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
The team won a record eight straight team titles and seven driver championships, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, from 2014 to 2021.
