Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to sell a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
The deal estimates the Mercedes team at £4.6 billion – a record for an F1 team – after McLaren was appraised at £3.5 billion in an adjustment to ownership structure last September.
Wolff, who owns a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, plans to divest a shareholding approximately 5%.
Wolff, aged 53 would stay on as team boss and CEO should the deal proceed.
Ownership Structure
Remaining partners in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos Group, who each also own a third of the enterprise.
A Mercedes spokesperson stated: "We will be making no official statement on this. The governance of the team stays unchanged, and each shareholder are dedicated to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in F1."
Valuation Growth
The deal signifies a substantial rise in value of Mercedes F1 after Ineos bought its stake for £208m in 2022.
The rise reflects the growth in market values of Formula 1 outfits in the past few years due to the growing popularity of Formula 1 around the world.
This was also seen in the box-office performance of the F1 movie featuring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and earned more than $630 million (£458m) at cinemas worldwide.
The film represents Pitt's most successful movie and the most successful sports movie to date.
Current Performance
Mercedes are runner-up in the constructors' championship, trailing McLaren, with three races left in the current championship.
Their lead driver George Russell has won two of the 21 races so far and is in fourth place in the individual standings after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
The team secured a unprecedented eight straight constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.
