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 £4.6 billion – an unprecedented figure for an F1 team – following McLaren were valued at £3.5 billion in an adjustment to corporate structure last September.
The Austrian executive, who owns a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a shareholding in the region of five percent.
The 53-year-old would stay on as team boss and chief executive officer should the deal proceed.
Shareholder Structure
Remaining partners in the team are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who each also own a third of the enterprise.
A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We are providing no comment on the matter. The management structure of the team will remain unchanged, and all three partners are fully committed to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in Formula One."
Valuation Increase
This arrangement would represent a substantial rise in worth of the Mercedes team after Ineos Group bought its stake for £208m in 2022.
This surge reflects the growth in valuations of Formula 1 outfits in the past few years as a consequence of the increasing appeal of Formula 1 globally.
This trend was evident with the success of the F1 movie starring Brad Pitt, which debuted last summer and earned more than $630 million (£458m) at the box office.
The film represents the actor's top-grossing film and the most successful sports film to date.
Present Performance
Mercedes are second in the team standings, trailing McLaren, with three Grands Prix 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 individual standings after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
The team won a unprecedented eight consecutive team titles and seven drivers' titles, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.
