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Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is in final negotiations to offload part of his ownership stake in the Mercedes F1 outfit.

This transaction values the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – after the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5 billion in an adjustment to corporate structure last September.

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

The 53-year-old will remain as team principal and CEO if the sale goes through.

Ownership Structure

The other shareholders in the team are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos, who both hold one-third of the company.

A Mercedes spokesperson stated: "We are providing no comment on this. The management structure of the team will remain unchanged, and each shareholder are dedicated to the ongoing success of the brand in Formula One."

Financial Growth

The deal would represent a substantial rise in worth of the Mercedes team since Ineos Group bought its stake for £208m in 2022.

The rise demonstrates the growth in valuations of F1 teams in the past few years due to the increasing appeal of the sport around the world.

This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film starring Brad Pitt, which was released last summer and has grossed over $630m (£458 million) at cinemas worldwide.

It is the actor's top-grossing movie and the most successful sports movie to date.

Current Performance

The Mercedes team are second in the team standings, trailing McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix left in the current championship.

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

Mercedes won a unprecedented eight consecutive team titles and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, from 2014 and 2021.