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Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is engaged in advanced talks to sell part of his ownership stake in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.

The deal values the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – a record for an F1 team – following the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5bn in a change of ownership structure in September.

The Austrian executive, who holds one-third of Mercedes F1, plans to divest a shareholding in the region of 5%.

The 53-year-old would stay on as team boss and CEO should the deal proceed.

Ownership Breakdown

The other shareholders in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos, who both hold a third of the company.

An official representative stated: "We are providing no official statement on this. The governance of Mercedes F1 stays unaltered, and all three partners are fully committed to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in Formula One."

Financial Increase

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

This surge reflects the expansion in valuations of Formula 1 outfits recently as a consequence of the growing popularity of Formula 1 around the world.

This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film featuring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which debuted last summer and has grossed more than $630m (£458 million) at the box office.

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

Current Standings

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

Their lead driver George Russell has secured victory in 2 of the 21 races so far and is in fourth place in the individual standings behind McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.

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