Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to offload a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
The deal estimates the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for an F1 team – following the McLaren team were valued at £3.5 billion in an adjustment to corporate structure last September.
Wolff, who owns one-third of the Mercedes F1 operation, plans to divest a shareholding in the region of five percent.
Wolff, aged 53 would stay on as team boss and CEO if the sale goes through.
Shareholder Structure
The other shareholders in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes-Benz and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who each also own a third of the enterprise.
A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We will be making no comment on the matter. The governance of the team stays unchanged, and each shareholder are fully committed to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in Formula One."
Financial Growth
The deal would represent a significant increase in worth of the Mercedes team since Ineos bought its stake for £208m in 2022.
This surge demonstrates the growth in valuations of Formula 1 outfits recently due to the increasing appeal of Formula 1 globally.
This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the F1 movie featuring Brad Pitt, which was released last summer and has grossed over $630 million (£458 million) at cinemas worldwide.
The film represents the actor's top-grossing film and the highest-earning sports movie ever released.
Current Performance
The Mercedes team are runner-up in the constructors' championship, trailing McLaren, with three races left this season.
Their lead driver British driver George Russell has won 2 of the 21 grands prix so far and is fourth in the drivers' championship after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes won a record eight consecutive team titles and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, from 2014 to 2021.
