Toto Wolff is in final negotiations to sell a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
The deal values the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for an F1 team – following McLaren were valued at £3.5bn in an adjustment to ownership structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who holds a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, plans to divest a shareholding in the region of 5%.
Wolff, aged 53 will remain as team principal and CEO if the sale goes through.
Shareholder Structure
Remaining partners in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes-Benz and industrial group Ineos, who each also own a third of the enterprise.
An official representative stated: "We are providing no comment on this. The governance of Mercedes F1 stays unaltered, and all three partners are dedicated to the ongoing success of the brand in F1."
Valuation Increase
The deal signifies a significant increase in value of Mercedes F1 since Ineos bought its stake for £208 million in 2022.
The rise demonstrates the growth in valuations of Formula 1 outfits in the past few years due to the growing popularity of the sport around the world.
This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film starring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and earned more than $630m (£458 million) at the box office.
It is the actor's top-grossing film and the most successful sports film to date.
Current Standings
The Mercedes team are second in the team standings, behind McLaren, with three Grands Prix remaining in the current championship.
Mercedes' primary racer George Russell has won 2 of the 21 grands prix so far and is fourth in the individual standings behind McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
The team secured a record eight consecutive team titles and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.
