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

The deal estimates Mercedes at £4.6bn – a record for a Formula 1 squad – following the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5bn in a change of ownership structure in September.

Wolff, who owns a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, plans to divest a shareholding approximately five percent.

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

Shareholder Structure

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

An official representative stated: "We will be making no comment on this. The management structure of the team will remain unchanged, and each shareholder are fully committed to continued achievements of the brand in Formula One."

Valuation Increase

This arrangement would represent a significant increase in value of Mercedes F1 since Ineos Group acquired its share for £208 million in 2022.

This surge reflects the growth in market values of F1 teams recently as a consequence of the growing popularity of the sport around the world.

This was also seen in the success of the Formula 1 film featuring Brad Pitt, which debuted last summer and earned more than $630m (£458m) at the box office.

The film represents Pitt's most successful movie and the most successful sports movie ever released.

Present Performance

Mercedes are second in the constructors' championship, behind McLaren, with three Grands Prix left in the current championship.

Mercedes' primary racer British driver George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 grands prix this year and is fourth in the individual standings after McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.

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