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Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is in final negotiations to sell a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes F1 outfit.

This transaction values Mercedes at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for an F1 team – after McLaren was appraised at £3.5bn in an adjustment to corporate structure last September.

Wolff, who holds one-third of Mercedes F1, plans to divest a stake approximately five percent.

Wolff, aged 53 would stay on as team principal and CEO if the sale goes through.

Shareholder Breakdown

Remaining partners in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes-Benz and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who both hold a third of the company.

A Mercedes spokesperson stated: "We are providing no comment on the matter. The governance of the team will remain unchanged, and all three partners are fully committed to the ongoing success of the brand in Formula One."

Valuation Growth

This arrangement would represent a significant increase in worth of Mercedes F1 after Ineos Group bought its stake for £208 million in 2022.

This surge demonstrates the expansion in valuations of F1 teams recently due to the increasing appeal of Formula 1 around the world.

This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the F1 movie starring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released last summer and earned over $630m (£458m) at cinemas worldwide.

The film represents the actor's top-grossing film and the most successful sports film ever released.

Current Standings

The Mercedes team are runner-up in the team standings, behind McLaren Racing, with three races left in the current championship.

Their lead driver British driver George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 grands prix so far and is fourth in the drivers' championship after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.

The team won a record eight straight constructors' championships and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.