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Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to offload a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.

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

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

Wolff, aged 53 would stay on as team principal and chief executive officer should the deal proceed.

Ownership Structure

Remaining partners in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes-Benz and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who each also own a third of the enterprise.

A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We will be making no comment on the matter. The management structure of the team will remain unaltered, and each shareholder are dedicated to the ongoing success of the brand in F1."

Financial Growth

This arrangement signifies a substantial rise in value of the Mercedes team since Ineos bought its share for £208 million in 2022.

The rise demonstrates the growth in valuations of Formula 1 outfits in the past few years due to the increasing appeal of the sport globally.

This trend was evident with the success of the F1 movie featuring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which debuted last summer and earned more than $630 million (£458m) at cinemas worldwide.

It is Pitt's most successful movie and the highest-earning sports movie ever released.

Present Performance

Mercedes are second in the constructors' championship, trailing McLaren Racing, with three races remaining this season.

Mercedes' primary racer British driver George Russell has secured victory in 2 of the 21 races so far and is fourth in the individual standings after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.

Mercedes won a unprecedented eight straight team titles and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.