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

The deal estimates the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – a record for an F1 team – following the McLaren team were valued at £3.5bn in a change of ownership structure last September.

The Austrian executive, who holds a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a stake in the region of 5%.

The 53-year-old would stay on as team boss and chief executive officer should the deal proceed.

Shareholder Breakdown

Remaining partners in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who both hold a third of the company.

A Mercedes spokesperson stated: "We will be making no comment on this. The governance of Mercedes F1 will remain unaltered, and each shareholder are dedicated to continued achievements of the brand in F1."

Financial Increase

This arrangement would represent a significant increase in worth of the Mercedes team since Ineos acquired its share for £208 million in 2022.

This surge reflects the expansion in market values of F1 teams recently as a consequence of the growing popularity of the sport around the world.

This was also seen in the box-office performance 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.

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

Present Performance

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

Mercedes' primary racer George Russell has secured victory in 2 of the 21 grands prix this year and is in fourth place in the individual standings after McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.

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