Toto Wolff is in final negotiations to offload a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
This transaction values the Mercedes team at £4.6 billion – an unprecedented figure for an F1 team – following McLaren were valued at £3.5 billion in an adjustment to ownership structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who owns a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a shareholding in the region of five percent.
Wolff, aged 53 would stay on as team boss and CEO should the deal proceed.
Shareholder Breakdown
The other shareholders in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos Group, who each also own one-third of the enterprise.
An official representative said: "We are providing no official statement on this. The management structure of the team stays unchanged, and all three partners are dedicated to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in Formula One."
Valuation Growth
This arrangement signifies a substantial rise in worth of Mercedes F1 after Ineos Group bought its share for £208m in 2022.
This surge reflects the growth in market values of F1 teams in the past few years due to the growing popularity of the sport around the world.
This was also seen in the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film featuring Brad Pitt, which debuted last summer and earned more than $630 million (£458 million) at the box office.
It is the actor's top-grossing film and the highest-earning sports film ever released.
Present Performance
The Mercedes team are second in the constructors' championship, trailing McLaren Racing, with three races remaining in the current championship.
Mercedes' primary racer British driver George Russell has won two of the 21 grands prix so far and is fourth in the individual standings after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
The team secured a unprecedented eight straight team titles and seven driver championships, six for Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.
