Toto Wolff is engaged in advanced talks to offload a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
The deal values Mercedes at £4.6 billion – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – after the McLaren team were valued at £3.5bn in a change of corporate structure in September.
Wolff, who holds one-third of Mercedes F1, plans to divest 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
Remaining partners in the team are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos Group, who both hold a third of the company.
An official representative stated: "We will be making no official statement on this. The management structure of Mercedes F1 stays unaltered, and all three partners are fully committed to the ongoing success of the brand in F1."
Valuation Increase
The deal signifies a significant increase in worth of Mercedes F1 since Ineos Group bought its share for £208 million in 2022.
The rise reflects the expansion in valuations of Formula 1 outfits in the past few years as a consequence of the increasing appeal of Formula 1 globally.
This was also seen in the success of the F1 movie featuring Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and has grossed more than $630 million (£458 million) at the box office.
The film represents Pitt's most successful movie and the highest-earning sports movie to date.
Current Performance
The Mercedes team are second in the team standings, behind McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix remaining in the current championship.
Mercedes' primary racer British driver George Russell has secured victory in 2 of the 21 grands prix this year and is fourth in the drivers' championship after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes won a unprecedented eight consecutive team titles and seven driver championships, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, from 2014 to 2021.
