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

The deal estimates the Mercedes team at £4.6 billion – a record for a Formula 1 squad – after the McLaren team were valued at £3.5bn in a change of corporate structure last September.

Wolff, who holds one-third of Mercedes F1, would sell a stake approximately five percent.

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

Shareholder Structure

Remaining partners in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos, who both hold one-third of the company.

An official representative stated: "We will be making no official statement on this. The governance of Mercedes F1 stays unchanged, and each shareholder are dedicated to continued achievements of the brand in F1."

Valuation Increase

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

This surge demonstrates the growth in valuations of Formula 1 outfits recently due to the increasing appeal of Formula 1 around the world.

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

It is Pitt's most successful film and the most successful sports film ever released.

Present Performance

Mercedes are runner-up in the constructors' championship, trailing McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix left this season.

Their lead driver George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 grands prix so far and is fourth in the individual standings behind McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.

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