Toto Wolff is engaged in advanced talks to offload a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
This transaction values Mercedes at £4.6 billion – a record for a Formula 1 squad – after the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5 billion in an adjustment to corporate structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who owns a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, would sell a stake approximately five percent.
The 53-year-old will remain as team principal and CEO if the sale goes through.
Ownership Breakdown
Remaining partners in the team are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who both hold a third of the enterprise.
A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We will be making no official statement on the matter. The management structure of the team stays unaltered, and each shareholder are dedicated to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in F1."
Valuation Increase
The deal would represent a substantial rise in value of the Mercedes team since Ineos Group acquired its stake for £208 million in 2022.
This surge demonstrates the expansion in market values of F1 teams in the past few years as a consequence of the increasing appeal of the sport globally.
This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film starring Brad Pitt, which was released last summer and has grossed more than $630 million (£458m) at cinemas worldwide.
The film represents the actor's top-grossing film and the highest-earning sports film to date.
Present Standings
The Mercedes team are runner-up in the team standings, behind McLaren, with three Grands Prix remaining this season.
Their lead driver British driver George Russell has secured victory in 2 of the 21 races so far and is in fourth place in the drivers' championship after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
The team won a record eight consecutive team titles and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.
