Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to sell part of his ownership stake in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
This transaction estimates Mercedes at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for an F1 team – following the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5 billion in an adjustment to ownership structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who holds one-third of Mercedes F1, would sell a shareholding approximately five percent.
The 53-year-old will remain as team boss and chief executive officer should the deal proceed.
Shareholder Structure
The other shareholders in the team are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos, who both hold one-third of the company.
A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We will be making no comment on this. The governance of the team will remain unchanged, and each shareholder are dedicated to continued achievements of the brand in F1."
Valuation Growth
This arrangement signifies a substantial rise in worth of the Mercedes team after Ineos Group acquired its stake for £208 million in 2022.
This surge demonstrates the growth in valuations of F1 teams in the past few years due to the growing popularity of the sport globally.
This was also seen in the success of the F1 movie starring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and has grossed more than $630 million (£458m) at the box office.
The film represents Pitt's most successful film and the most successful sports film to date.
Current Performance
Mercedes are second in the constructors' championship, trailing McLaren, with three Grands Prix remaining this season.
Their lead driver George Russell has won 2 of the 21 grands prix so far and is fourth in the individual standings behind McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes won a record eight straight constructors' championships and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.
