Toto Wolff is in final negotiations to offload part of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
This transaction estimates Mercedes at £4.6 billion – an unprecedented figure for an F1 team – after the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5 billion in an adjustment to ownership structure last September.
The Austrian executive, who owns one-third of Mercedes F1, would sell a shareholding in the region of five percent.
Wolff, aged 53 will remain as team principal and chief executive officer if the sale goes through.
Ownership Structure
Remaining partners in the team are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who each also own one-third of the company.
An official representative stated: "We will be making no comment on the matter. The governance of the team will remain unaltered, and all three partners are fully committed to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in F1."
Financial Increase
This arrangement would represent a substantial rise in value of Mercedes F1 after Ineos acquired its stake for £208 million in 2022.
The rise demonstrates the growth in market values of F1 teams recently due to 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 over $630m (£458 million) at the box office.
The film represents Pitt's most successful film and the most successful sports movie to date.
Current Performance
Mercedes are runner-up in the team standings, trailing McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix remaining this season.
Mercedes' primary racer George Russell has won two of the 21 races so far and is fourth in the drivers' championship after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes secured a record eight straight constructors' championships and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, from 2014 to 2021.
