Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is engaged in advanced talks to offload a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
This transaction values the Mercedes team at £4.6 billion – an unprecedented figure for an F1 team – following McLaren was appraised at £3.5bn in a change of corporate structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who owns one-third of Mercedes F1, would sell a shareholding approximately five percent.
Wolff, aged 53 would stay on as team principal and CEO if the sale goes through.
Ownership Breakdown
The other shareholders in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos, who each also own a third of the enterprise.
An official representative stated: "We will be making no comment on this. The management structure of the team stays unaltered, and each shareholder are dedicated to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in Formula One."
Valuation Increase
This arrangement would represent a significant increase in value of Mercedes F1 after Ineos bought its stake for £208m in 2022.
This surge reflects the expansion in valuations of Formula 1 outfits recently due to the increasing appeal of the sport globally.
This was also seen in the success of the F1 movie starring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and earned over $630m (£458m) at the box office.
It is the actor's top-grossing movie and the highest-earning sports film to date.
Current Standings
Mercedes are runner-up in the constructors' championship, trailing McLaren Racing, with three races remaining in the current championship.
Mercedes' primary racer British driver George Russell has secured victory in 2 of the 21 grands prix so far and is in fourth place in the individual standings behind McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes secured a unprecedented eight straight team titles and seven driver championships, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.
