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Toto Wolff is engaged in advanced talks to offload part of his shareholding in the Mercedes F1 outfit.

The deal values Mercedes at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – following the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5 billion in an adjustment to corporate structure last September.

The Austrian executive, who holds a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, plans to divest a shareholding in the region of 5%.

The 53-year-old would stay on as team boss and chief executive officer if the sale goes through.

Ownership Structure

Remaining partners in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos, who each also own a third of the company.

An official representative said: "We will be making no comment on the matter. The governance of Mercedes F1 stays unchanged, and all three partners are fully committed to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in F1."

Valuation Growth

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

The rise reflects the growth in valuations of F1 teams in the past few years as a consequence of the growing popularity of the sport globally.

This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film featuring Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and earned over $630 million (£458m) at the box office.

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

Current Performance

Mercedes are second in the team standings, trailing McLaren, with three races left in the current championship.

Their lead driver British driver George Russell has secured victory in 2 of the 21 races this year and is fourth in the drivers' championship behind McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.

Mercedes secured a unprecedented eight straight constructors' championships and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.