Toto Wolff is in advanced talks to offload a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
The deal values the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for an F1 team – following McLaren were valued at £3.5 billion in a change of corporate structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who owns one-third of the Mercedes F1 operation, plans to divest a stake approximately five percent.
The 53-year-old will remain as team boss and chief executive officer should the deal proceed.
Shareholder Breakdown
The other shareholders in the team are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos, who both hold one-third of the enterprise.
An official representative said: "We will be making no comment on this. The governance of Mercedes F1 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 the Mercedes team after Ineos acquired its stake for £208m in 2022.
This surge demonstrates the growth in valuations of F1 teams in the past few years due to the increasing appeal of Formula 1 globally.
This was also seen in the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film starring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and has grossed over $630 million (£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 runner-up in the team standings, behind McLaren Racing, with three races left in the current championship.
Their lead driver British driver George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 grands prix so far and is fourth in the drivers' championship behind McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes secured a unprecedented eight consecutive team titles and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.
