Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to offload a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
The deal values Mercedes at £4.6 billion – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – following the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5 billion in an adjustment to ownership structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who holds a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a stake approximately 5%.
The 53-year-old will remain as team principal and CEO should the deal proceed.
Ownership Breakdown
Remaining partners in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes-Benz and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who each also own one-third of the company.
An official representative stated: "We are providing no official statement on the matter. The management structure of the team will remain unaltered, and all three partners are fully committed to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in Formula One."
Valuation Increase
This arrangement would represent a substantial rise in worth of the Mercedes team after Ineos acquired its share for £208 million in 2022.
The rise reflects the growth in valuations of F1 teams recently as a consequence of the increasing appeal of Formula 1 globally.
This trend was evident with the success of the Formula 1 film featuring Brad Pitt, which debuted last summer and has grossed over $630 million (£458 million) at the box office.
The film represents Pitt's most successful film and the highest-earning sports movie to date.
Current Standings
The Mercedes team are second in the constructors' championship, trailing McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix left this season.
Mercedes' primary racer British driver George Russell has secured victory in 2 of the 21 grands prix this year and is in fourth place in the drivers' championship after McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes secured a unprecedented eight consecutive constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.
