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Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to offload part of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.

The deal estimates the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for an F1 team – after McLaren was appraised at £3.5 billion in a change of corporate structure last September.

The Austrian executive, who holds one-third of Mercedes F1, plans to divest a shareholding 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 Mercedes F1 are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos, who both hold one-third of the enterprise.

An official representative said: "We will be making no official statement on the matter. The governance of Mercedes F1 stays unchanged, and each shareholder are fully committed to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in F1."

Valuation Growth

This arrangement signifies a significant increase in value of Mercedes F1 after Ineos Group acquired its stake for £208m in 2022.

The rise reflects the expansion in valuations of F1 teams recently due to the increasing appeal of the sport globally.

This trend was evident with the success of the F1 movie starring Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and earned over $630m (£458 million) at cinemas worldwide.

The film represents the actor's top-grossing movie and the highest-earning sports movie to date.

Present Standings

Mercedes are runner-up in the team standings, trailing McLaren Racing, with three races left this season.

Mercedes' primary racer British driver George Russell has won 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's Max Verstappen.

The team won a unprecedented eight consecutive constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.