Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to offload a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
This transaction estimates Mercedes at £4.6bn – a record for a Formula 1 squad – following McLaren were valued at £3.5 billion in an adjustment to ownership structure in September.
Wolff, who owns one-third of the Mercedes F1 operation, plans to divest a shareholding approximately 5%.
The 53-year-old would stay on as team principal and CEO should the deal proceed.
Ownership Structure
The other shareholders in the team are Mercedes-Benz and industrial group Ineos Group, who both hold a third of the company.
An official representative said: "We are providing no official statement on the matter. The management structure of the team will remain unaltered, and each shareholder are fully committed to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in F1."
Financial Increase
This arrangement would represent a substantial rise in worth of Mercedes F1 after Ineos bought its stake for £208 million in 2022.
This surge reflects the expansion in market values of F1 teams recently due to the increasing appeal of Formula 1 around the world.
This was also seen in the box-office performance of the F1 movie featuring Brad Pitt, which was released last summer and has grossed over $630 million (£458m) at cinemas worldwide.
The film represents the actor's top-grossing film and the highest-earning sports film to date.
Current Standings
The Mercedes team are runner-up in the constructors' championship, trailing McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix left in the current championship.
Mercedes' primary racer George Russell has won 2 of the 21 races so far and is in fourth place in the individual standings behind McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes won a unprecedented eight straight team titles and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, from 2014 and 2021.
