Toto Wolff is in final negotiations to sell part of his ownership stake in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
The deal values Mercedes at £4.6 billion – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – after McLaren was appraised at £3.5bn in an adjustment to ownership structure in September.
Wolff, who holds one-third of Mercedes F1, plans to divest a stake in the region of five percent.
The 53-year-old will remain as team boss and chief executive officer should the deal proceed.
Ownership Breakdown
Remaining partners in the team are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos, who both hold one-third of the enterprise.
An official representative said: "We are providing no official statement on the matter. The management structure of Mercedes F1 stays unchanged, and all three partners are dedicated to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in Formula One."
Financial Growth
The deal would represent a substantial rise in worth of the Mercedes team since Ineos acquired its stake for £208m in 2022.
This surge demonstrates the expansion in market values of Formula 1 outfits recently as a consequence of the growing popularity of the sport around the world.
This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the F1 movie featuring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and has grossed over $630m (£458 million) at the box office.
The film represents Pitt's most successful movie and the highest-earning sports film to date.
Current Performance
The Mercedes team are second in the constructors' championship, trailing McLaren, with three races left in the current championship.
Mercedes' primary racer British driver George Russell has secured victory in 2 of the 21 races this year and is in fourth place in the drivers' championship after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
The team won a record eight straight team titles and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.
