Toto Wolff is engaged in advanced talks to sell part of his shareholding in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
This transaction values Mercedes at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – following the McLaren team were valued at £3.5 billion in a change of corporate structure last September.
The Austrian executive, who owns one-third of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a stake in the region of five percent.
Wolff, aged 53 will remain as team boss and CEO should the deal proceed.
Shareholder Structure
The other shareholders in the team are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos, who both hold a 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 continued achievements of the brand in Formula One."
Valuation Growth
The deal would represent a significant increase in worth of Mercedes F1 since Ineos bought its share for £208m in 2022.
This surge reflects the expansion in market values 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 Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and earned over $630 million (£458 million) at cinemas worldwide.
The film represents Pitt's most successful film and the highest-earning sports movie to date.
Current Standings
Mercedes are runner-up in the team standings, trailing McLaren Racing, with three races left in the current championship.
Mercedes' primary racer British driver George Russell has won two of the 21 races this year and is fourth in the individual standings after McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
The team secured a record eight consecutive constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.
