Toto Wolff is engaged in advanced talks to sell part of his shareholding in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
This transaction estimates Mercedes at £4.6 billion – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – following the McLaren team were valued at £3.5bn in an adjustment to ownership structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who holds a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, would sell a shareholding in the region of five percent.
The 53-year-old will remain as team boss and chief executive officer if the sale goes through.
Ownership Structure
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 are providing no comment on this. The management structure of the team stays unaltered, and each shareholder are dedicated to continued achievements of the brand in Formula One."
Valuation Growth
This arrangement signifies a significant increase in value of the Mercedes team since Ineos bought its stake for £208 million in 2022.
This surge demonstrates the growth in valuations of F1 teams in the past few years as a consequence of the growing popularity of Formula 1 globally.
This was also seen in the success of the F1 movie featuring Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and earned more than $630m (£458 million) at the box office.
The film represents Pitt's most successful movie and the most successful sports movie to date.
Present Performance
Mercedes are runner-up in the team standings, behind McLaren, with three Grands Prix left this season.
Their lead driver George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 grands prix so far and is fourth in the drivers' championship behind McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes secured a record eight straight constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, from 2014 to 2021.
