Toto Wolff is in final negotiations to offload part of his ownership stake in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
The deal values the Mercedes team at £4.6 billion – a record for an F1 team – after McLaren 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 stake in the region of five percent.
Wolff, aged 53 will remain as team principal and CEO if the sale goes through.
Shareholder Breakdown
The other shareholders in the team are Mercedes-Benz and industrial group Ineos, who each also own one-third of the enterprise.
A Mercedes spokesperson stated: "We will be making no official statement on the matter. The governance of Mercedes F1 stays unchanged, and all three partners are dedicated to continued achievements of the brand in F1."
Financial Growth
This arrangement signifies a substantial rise in worth of the Mercedes team since Ineos Group bought its stake for £208 million in 2022.
The rise reflects the expansion in market values of F1 teams recently as a consequence of the growing popularity of the sport around the world.
This was also seen in the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film starring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and has grossed more than $630 million (£458m) at the box office.
It is the actor's top-grossing movie and the most successful sports film ever released.
Current Performance
Mercedes are runner-up in the team standings, trailing 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 in fourth place in the individual standings behind McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
The team won a unprecedented eight straight constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.
