Toto Wolff is engaged in advanced talks to offload a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
The deal estimates the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for an F1 team – following the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5 billion in a change of ownership structure last September.
Wolff, who holds one-third of the Mercedes F1 operation, plans to divest a shareholding in the region of five percent.
Wolff, aged 53 would stay on as team principal and CEO should the deal proceed.
Ownership Breakdown
The other shareholders in the team are Mercedes-Benz and industrial group Ineos, who both hold a third of the company.
An official representative said: "We are providing no official statement on the matter. The management structure of Mercedes F1 will remain unchanged, and all three partners are dedicated to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in Formula One."
Valuation Growth
This arrangement would represent a substantial rise in value of the Mercedes team after Ineos Group acquired its stake for £208m in 2022.
This surge reflects the expansion in valuations of F1 teams recently due to the growing popularity of the sport around the world.
This trend was evident with the success of the Formula 1 film featuring Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and earned more than $630m (£458m) at the box office.
It is the actor's top-grossing movie and the highest-earning sports movie ever released.
Present Performance
Mercedes are second in the team standings, behind McLaren, with three Grands Prix remaining this season.
Mercedes' primary racer British driver George Russell has won 2 of the 21 races this year and is in fourth place in the drivers' championship behind McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
The team secured a unprecedented eight straight constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, from 2014 and 2021.
