Toto Wolff is in final negotiations to sell a portion of his shareholding 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 £3.5 billion in an adjustment to ownership structure last September.
The Austrian executive, who owns a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a stake in the region of 5%.
The 53-year-old will remain as team boss and CEO should the deal proceed.
Shareholder Breakdown
Remaining partners in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes-Benz and industrial group Ineos, who both hold one-third of the enterprise.
An official representative stated: "We will be making no official statement on this. The management structure of Mercedes F1 will remain unaltered, and all three partners are dedicated to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in F1."
Financial Increase
This arrangement would represent a significant increase in value of the Mercedes team after Ineos Group acquired its share for £208 million in 2022.
The rise reflects the expansion in valuations of F1 teams in the past few years as a consequence of the growing popularity of Formula 1 around the world.
This was also seen in the box-office performance of the F1 movie starring Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and earned more than $630 million (£458 million) at cinemas worldwide.
The film represents Pitt's most successful movie and the highest-earning sports film ever released.
Current Standings
The Mercedes team are second in the team standings, behind McLaren, with three Grands Prix left in the current championship.
Their lead driver George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 grands prix this year and is in fourth place in the drivers' championship behind McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes secured a unprecedented eight straight constructors' championships and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, from 2014 to 2021.
