Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is in final negotiations to offload a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
This transaction estimates the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – after the McLaren team were valued at £3.5 billion in an adjustment to corporate structure last September.
Wolff, who owns a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, plans to divest a stake in the region of five percent.
Wolff, aged 53 will remain as team boss and CEO if the sale goes through.
Shareholder Structure
Remaining partners in the team are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos, who both hold one-third of the company.
A Mercedes spokesperson stated: "We are providing no official statement on this. The management structure of Mercedes F1 will remain unaltered, and each shareholder are fully committed to the ongoing success of the brand in F1."
Valuation Increase
This arrangement would represent a significant increase in worth of the Mercedes team since Ineos bought its share for £208 million in 2022.
This surge reflects the growth in valuations of F1 teams in the past few years as a consequence of the growing popularity of the sport around the world.
This was also seen in the success of the F1 movie starring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and earned more than $630 million (£458 million) at the box office.
It is the actor's top-grossing movie and the most successful sports movie to date.
Present Performance
Mercedes are second in the team standings, trailing McLaren, with three Grands Prix left this season.
Mercedes' primary racer George Russell has won two of the 21 grands prix so far and is in fourth place in the drivers' championship after McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes won a unprecedented eight straight team titles and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.
