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

The deal values Mercedes at £4.6 billion – a record for an F1 team – following the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5bn in an adjustment to ownership structure in September.

The Austrian executive, who owns a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, would sell a shareholding approximately 5%.

Wolff, aged 53 will remain as team boss and CEO if the sale goes through.

Shareholder Structure

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

An official representative stated: "We will be making no official statement on the matter. The management structure of Mercedes F1 will remain unaltered, and each shareholder are dedicated to the ongoing success of the brand in F1."

Valuation Growth

The deal would represent a significant increase in value of the Mercedes team since Ineos acquired its share for £208 million in 2022.

The rise demonstrates the growth in valuations of Formula 1 outfits recently as a consequence of the increasing appeal of Formula 1 globally.

This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the F1 movie starring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released last summer and earned more than $630 million (£458 million) at cinemas worldwide.

The film represents Pitt's most successful film and the most successful sports movie to date.

Present Standings

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

Their lead driver George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 races so far and is fourth in the drivers' championship 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 for Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.