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Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is in advanced talks to sell part of his ownership stake in the Mercedes F1 outfit.

The deal values the Mercedes team at £4.6 billion – a record for an F1 team – after the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5bn in a change of ownership structure last September.

Wolff, who holds a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a stake approximately five percent.

The 53-year-old would stay on as team principal and CEO should the deal proceed.

Ownership Structure

Remaining partners in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos, who each also own one-third of the enterprise.

A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We will be making no comment on the matter. The management structure of the team will remain unchanged, and all three partners are dedicated to the ongoing success of the brand in F1."

Financial Increase

The deal signifies a significant increase in value of the Mercedes team after Ineos bought its stake for £208m in 2022.

The rise demonstrates the expansion in valuations of F1 teams in the past few years as a consequence of the growing popularity of Formula 1 globally.

This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the F1 movie featuring Brad Pitt, which debuted last summer and has grossed over $630m (£458m) at the box office.

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

Present Standings

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

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

The team won a record eight straight constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.