Toto Wolff is in final negotiations to offload part of his ownership stake in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
This transaction estimates the Mercedes team at £4.6 billion – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – after McLaren were valued at £3.5 billion in an adjustment to corporate structure last September.
The Austrian executive, who holds one-third of Mercedes F1, plans to divest a stake approximately five percent.
Wolff, aged 53 would stay on as team principal and chief executive officer if the sale goes through.
Ownership Structure
The other shareholders in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes-Benz and chemicals giant Ineos, who each also own a third of the enterprise.
An official representative said: "We are providing no official statement on the matter. The management structure of the team will remain unaltered, and all three partners are fully committed to the ongoing success of the brand in F1."
Valuation Growth
The deal signifies a significant increase in worth of the Mercedes team after Ineos Group bought its stake for £208m in 2022.
This surge reflects the growth in market values of F1 teams in the past few years as a consequence of the increasing appeal of Formula 1 globally.
This was also seen in the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film featuring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and earned more than $630m (£458 million) at the box office.
It is Pitt's most successful film and the most successful sports film to date.
Current Standings
Mercedes are runner-up in the team standings, trailing McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix remaining this season.
Their lead driver British driver George Russell has won 2 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.
The team won a record eight straight team titles and seven drivers' titles, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, from 2014 and 2021.
