Toto Wolff is in final negotiations to sell a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
This transaction estimates Mercedes at £4.6 billion – an unprecedented figure for an F1 team – after McLaren were valued at £3.5 billion in a change of corporate structure last September.
The Austrian executive, who owns a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, plans to divest a stake in the region of five percent.
The 53-year-old will remain as team principal and chief executive officer if the sale goes through.
Shareholder Breakdown
The other shareholders in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes-Benz and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who both hold a third of the company.
An official representative said: "We are providing no comment on this. The management structure of the team stays unchanged, and all three partners are dedicated to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in Formula One."
Financial Growth
This arrangement would represent a substantial rise in worth of Mercedes F1 after Ineos bought its stake for £208 million in 2022.
The rise reflects the expansion in market values of Formula 1 outfits recently as a consequence of the growing popularity of Formula 1 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 last summer and earned over $630m (£458m) at the box office.
It is Pitt's most successful film and the most successful sports movie to date.
Current Performance
The Mercedes team are second in the constructors' championship, behind McLaren, with three Grands Prix remaining this season.
Mercedes' primary racer British driver George Russell has won 2 of the 21 grands prix this year and is in fourth place in the drivers' championship behind McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes secured a record eight straight team titles and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.
