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Toto Wolff is in final negotiations to sell a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.

This transaction estimates Mercedes at £4.6 billion – a record for an F1 team – following McLaren were valued at £3.5bn in an adjustment to corporate structure in September.

The Austrian executive, who owns one-third of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a shareholding approximately five percent.

The 53-year-old will remain as team boss and chief executive officer if the sale goes through.

Ownership Structure

The other shareholders in the team are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who both hold one-third of the enterprise.

A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We are providing no official statement on the matter. The management structure of the team stays unaltered, and all three partners are fully committed to continued achievements of the brand in Formula One."

Valuation Increase

This arrangement would represent a substantial rise in worth of the Mercedes team after Ineos Group bought its share for £208m in 2022.

This surge reflects the expansion in valuations of Formula 1 outfits in the past few years due to the growing popularity of Formula 1 globally.

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

It is the actor's top-grossing film and the most successful sports film to date.

Present Standings

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

Their lead driver British driver George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 grands prix 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 secured a unprecedented eight straight team titles and seven driver championships, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, from 2014 and 2021.