Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is engaged in advanced talks to offload a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
This transaction estimates Mercedes at £4.6 billion – a record for an F1 team – after McLaren was appraised at £3.5 billion in a change of corporate structure last September.
Wolff, who holds a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a stake approximately five percent.
The 53-year-old will remain as team boss and chief executive officer if the sale goes through.
Ownership Structure
The other shareholders in Mercedes F1 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 governance of the team will remain unchanged, and all three partners are fully committed to the ongoing success of the brand in F1."
Financial Growth
This arrangement would represent a significant increase in value of Mercedes F1 since Ineos acquired its stake for £208 million in 2022.
This surge reflects the expansion in market values of F1 teams in the past few years as a consequence of the growing popularity of Formula 1 globally.
This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film starring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and has grossed more than $630 million (£458 million) at cinemas worldwide.
It is Pitt's most successful film and the most successful sports film to date.
Current Standings
The Mercedes team are second in the team standings, trailing McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix left in the current championship.
Mercedes' primary racer George Russell has won 2 of the 21 races this year and is in fourth place in the individual standings behind McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
The team secured a unprecedented eight straight team titles and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.
