Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is in final negotiations to sell part of his shareholding in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
The deal estimates Mercedes at £4.6bn – a record for an F1 team – following the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5bn in an adjustment to ownership structure last September.
Wolff, who owns one-third of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a stake in the region of five percent.
Wolff, aged 53 will remain as team principal and chief executive officer should the deal proceed.
Shareholder Structure
The other shareholders in the team are Mercedes-Benz and chemicals giant Ineos, who each also own one-third of the company.
A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We will be making no official statement on this. The management structure of the team stays unchanged, and all three partners are fully committed to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in F1."
Valuation Growth
The deal would represent a significant increase in worth of the Mercedes team since Ineos bought its share for £208 million in 2022.
The rise 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 trend was evident with the success of the Formula 1 film featuring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and has grossed more than $630 million (£458m) at the box office.
It is Pitt's most successful movie and the most successful sports movie to date.
Present Performance
Mercedes are runner-up in the team standings, trailing McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix left in the current championship.
Mercedes' primary racer George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 grands prix this year and is fourth in the drivers' championship after McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
The team won a unprecedented eight straight team titles and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, from 2014 and 2021.
