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

The deal values Mercedes at £4.6 billion – a record for an F1 team – after the McLaren team were valued at £3.5bn in an adjustment to corporate structure in September.

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

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 industrial group Ineos, who both hold one-third of the enterprise.

A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We will be making no comment on this. The governance of Mercedes F1 stays unaltered, and each shareholder are fully committed to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in F1."

Valuation Increase

The deal would represent a substantial rise in value of Mercedes F1 since Ineos acquired its share for £208m in 2022.

The rise demonstrates the growth in valuations of Formula 1 outfits in the past few years as a consequence of the increasing appeal of the sport globally.

This was also seen in the success of the F1 movie featuring Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and has grossed over $630 million (£458 million) at the box office.

It is the actor's top-grossing film and the highest-earning sports film to date.

Current Performance

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

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

Mercedes won a unprecedented eight consecutive constructors' championships and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, from 2014 and 2021.