Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to offload part of his shareholding in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
This transaction values the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for an F1 team – following McLaren was appraised at £3.5bn in an adjustment to corporate structure last September.
Wolff, who holds a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a stake 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
The other shareholders in the team are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos Group, who each also own a third of the company.
A Mercedes spokesperson stated: "We will be making no comment on the matter. The management structure of Mercedes F1 stays unchanged, and each shareholder are dedicated to continued achievements of the brand in F1."
Valuation Increase
This arrangement signifies a substantial rise in worth of Mercedes F1 after Ineos acquired its stake for £208m in 2022.
The rise reflects the growth in market values of F1 teams in the past few years as a consequence of the growing popularity of the sport globally.
This was also seen in the box-office performance of the F1 movie starring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and earned more than $630 million (£458 million) at the box office.
It is Pitt's most successful movie and the highest-earning sports movie to date.
Present Standings
The Mercedes team are second in the constructors' championship, behind McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix remaining this season.
Mercedes' primary racer George Russell has won 2 of the 21 races so far and is in fourth place in the individual standings after McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes won a unprecedented eight consecutive team titles and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, from 2014 to 2021.
