Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to offload a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
The deal estimates Mercedes at £4.6 billion – an unprecedented figure for an F1 team – following the McLaren team were valued at £3.5 billion in a change of corporate structure last September.
Wolff, who holds a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a stake approximately five percent.
The 53-year-old will remain as team boss and CEO if the sale goes through.
Ownership Structure
Remaining partners in the team are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos, who each also own a third of the enterprise.
A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We are providing no official statement on the matter. The governance of Mercedes F1 will remain unchanged, and all three partners are fully committed to the ongoing success of the brand in F1."
Valuation Increase
This arrangement signifies a substantial rise in worth of Mercedes F1 since Ineos Group acquired its share for £208 million in 2022.
The rise reflects the growth in market values of F1 teams recently as a consequence of the increasing appeal of Formula 1 globally.
This trend was evident with the success of the F1 movie starring Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and has grossed over $630m (£458m) at the box office.
The film represents Pitt's most successful movie and the highest-earning sports movie to date.
Present Standings
The Mercedes team are runner-up in the team standings, trailing McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix left this season.
Mercedes' primary racer George Russell has won 2 of the 21 races so far and is fourth in the drivers' championship behind McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
The team won a record eight consecutive constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.
