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Toto Wolff is in final negotiations to sell a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes F1 outfit.

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

The Austrian executive, who owns one-third of the Mercedes F1 operation, plans to divest a stake in the region of 5%.

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

Shareholder Breakdown

The other shareholders in the team are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos, who each also own one-third of the company.

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

Valuation Increase

This arrangement signifies a substantial rise in value of the Mercedes team since Ineos bought its stake for £208m in 2022.

This surge demonstrates the expansion in valuations of Formula 1 outfits recently as a consequence of the growing popularity of Formula 1 around the world.

This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film starring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which debuted last summer and has grossed over $630m (£458 million) at the box office.

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

Present Standings

Mercedes are runner-up in the team standings, behind McLaren, with three races left in the current championship.

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

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