Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to offload part of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
This transaction values Mercedes at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – after McLaren was appraised at £3.5bn in a change of corporate structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who holds one-third of Mercedes F1, would sell a stake in the region of 5%.
The 53-year-old will remain as team boss and chief executive officer if the sale goes through.
Shareholder Structure
The other shareholders in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos, who both hold one-third of the enterprise.
A Mercedes spokesperson stated: "We are providing no comment on the matter. The governance of the team will remain unaltered, and each shareholder are dedicated to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in Formula One."
Valuation Increase
This arrangement would represent a substantial rise in worth of Mercedes F1 after Ineos bought its stake for £208m in 2022.
The rise demonstrates the expansion in market values of F1 teams in the past few years due to the increasing appeal of the sport around the world.
This was also seen in the success of the Formula 1 film starring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and earned more than $630 million (£458 million) at the box office.
The film represents Pitt's most successful movie and the most successful sports movie ever released.
Current Standings
Mercedes are second in the team standings, trailing McLaren Racing, with three races left in the current championship.
Their lead driver George Russell has won two of the 21 races this year and is fourth in the individual standings after McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes won a unprecedented eight consecutive team titles and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, from 2014 and 2021.
