Toto Wolff is in final negotiations to sell a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
This transaction values the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – a record for an F1 team – following the McLaren team were valued at £3.5 billion in an adjustment to ownership structure last September.
The Austrian executive, who owns one-third of the Mercedes F1 operation, plans to divest a shareholding approximately five percent.
The 53-year-old would stay on as team principal and chief executive officer should the deal proceed.
Ownership Breakdown
The other shareholders in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos, who both hold a third of the enterprise.
A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We are providing no comment on this. The management structure of the team stays unaltered, and each shareholder are fully committed to continued achievements of the brand in F1."
Valuation Increase
The deal would represent a significant increase in worth of Mercedes F1 after Ineos bought its share for £208 million in 2022.
This surge reflects the expansion in market values of F1 teams in the past few years as a consequence of the increasing appeal of Formula 1 around the world.
This was also seen in the box-office performance of the F1 movie featuring Hollywood star 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 most successful sports movie to date.
Current Standings
Mercedes are second in the constructors' championship, behind McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix left in the current championship.
Their lead driver British driver George Russell has won two of the 21 grands prix this year and is fourth in the drivers' championship after McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes secured a unprecedented eight straight team titles and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.
