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

This transaction values the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – a record for an F1 team – after the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5bn in an adjustment to ownership structure in September.

Wolff, who owns one-third of Mercedes F1, would sell a shareholding in the region of five percent.

The 53-year-old would stay on as team boss and chief executive officer if the sale goes through.

Shareholder Structure

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

An official representative said: "We are providing no comment on the matter. The management structure of Mercedes F1 will remain unchanged, and all three partners are dedicated to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in F1."

Financial Increase

This arrangement signifies a substantial rise in worth of the Mercedes team after Ineos Group bought its share for £208m in 2022.

This surge demonstrates the growth in market values of F1 teams recently due to the increasing appeal of Formula 1 globally.

This was also seen in the box-office performance of the F1 movie featuring Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and earned over $630m (£458 million) at the box office.

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

Present Performance

The Mercedes team are runner-up in the constructors' championship, 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 after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.

Mercedes won a unprecedented eight straight constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.