Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to sell a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
The deal estimates the Mercedes team at £4.6 billion – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – following McLaren were valued at £3.5bn in an adjustment to corporate structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who owns a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, plans to divest 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.
Shareholder Breakdown
Remaining partners in the team are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who both hold one-third of the enterprise.
A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We will be making no official statement on this. The management structure of Mercedes F1 will remain unaltered, and all three partners are fully committed to the ongoing success of the brand in Formula One."
Financial Growth
This arrangement signifies a significant increase in worth of the Mercedes team after Ineos bought its share for £208 million in 2022.
This surge demonstrates the growth in market values of F1 teams in the past few years due to the growing popularity of Formula 1 globally.
This was also seen in the success of the F1 movie starring Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and has grossed over $630 million (£458 million) at the box office.
It is the actor's top-grossing film and the highest-earning sports film ever released.
Present Performance
The Mercedes team are second 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 grands prix so far and is in fourth place in the drivers' championship behind McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
The team won a record eight straight constructors' championships and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, from 2014 and 2021.
