Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is engaged in advanced talks to sell a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
This transaction values Mercedes at £4.6 billion – a record for a Formula 1 squad – following McLaren was appraised at £3.5bn in a change of ownership 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 principal and chief executive officer if the sale goes through.
Shareholder Structure
Remaining partners in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes-Benz and industrial group Ineos, who each also own one-third of the enterprise.
An official representative stated: "We are providing no comment on the matter. The management structure of the team will remain unchanged, and all three partners are dedicated to continued achievements of the brand in F1."
Financial Increase
The deal would represent a substantial rise in value of Mercedes F1 after Ineos Group bought its stake for £208 million in 2022.
The rise reflects the expansion in valuations of F1 teams in the past few years as a consequence of the growing popularity of the sport around the world.
This trend was evident with the success of the Formula 1 film starring Brad Pitt, which debuted last summer and earned more than $630m (£458 million) at the box office.
It is Pitt's most successful film and the highest-earning sports movie to date.
Current Standings
The Mercedes team are runner-up in the constructors' championship, behind McLaren, with three Grands Prix remaining in the current championship.
Their lead driver British driver George Russell has won 2 of the 21 races so far and is fourth in the individual standings after McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes won a unprecedented eight straight constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, from 2014 to 2021.
