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

The deal values Mercedes at £4.6bn – a record for a Formula 1 squad – after McLaren was appraised at £3.5 billion in an adjustment to ownership structure in September.

Wolff, who owns one-third of the Mercedes F1 operation, plans to divest a shareholding in the region of 5%.

The 53-year-old will remain as team principal and chief executive officer if the sale goes through.

Ownership Breakdown

Remaining partners in the team are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos, who both hold a third of the enterprise.

A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We are providing no official statement on this. The governance of the team will remain unchanged, and each shareholder are fully committed to continued achievements of the brand in F1."

Valuation Growth

This arrangement signifies a significant increase in value of Mercedes F1 since Ineos bought its share for £208 million in 2022.

The rise reflects the expansion in market values of F1 teams recently as a consequence of the increasing appeal of the sport around the world.

This was also seen in the success of the Formula 1 film starring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released last summer and has grossed more than $630 million (£458 million) at cinemas worldwide.

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

Present Performance

The Mercedes team are runner-up in the team standings, trailing McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix remaining this season.

Mercedes' primary racer George Russell has won 2 of the 21 grands prix so far and is fourth in the individual standings behind McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.

The team won a unprecedented eight straight team titles and seven drivers' titles, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, from 2014 and 2021.