Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to offload part of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
The deal values Mercedes at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for an F1 team – following McLaren was appraised at £3.5bn in a change of corporate structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who holds a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, would sell a shareholding approximately 5%.
Wolff, aged 53 will remain as team principal and CEO should the deal proceed.
Shareholder Breakdown
Remaining partners in the team are Mercedes-Benz and chemicals giant Ineos, who both hold a third of the enterprise.
An official representative stated: "We will be making no comment on the matter. The management structure of the team will remain unaltered, and all three partners are fully committed to continued achievements of the brand in Formula One."
Valuation Growth
The deal signifies a substantial rise in worth of the Mercedes team since Ineos Group acquired its share for £208m in 2022.
This surge demonstrates the expansion in market values of Formula 1 outfits 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 F1 movie starring Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and has grossed over $630 million (£458 million) at cinemas worldwide.
The film represents Pitt's most successful film and the most successful sports movie ever released.
Current Performance
The Mercedes team are second in the team standings, behind McLaren, with three races left in the current championship.
Their lead driver British driver George Russell has won 2 of the 21 grands prix this year and is in fourth place in the drivers' championship after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
The team won a unprecedented eight consecutive team titles and seven driver championships, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.
