Toto Wolff is in final negotiations to offload part of his shareholding in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
This transaction values Mercedes at £4.6bn – a record for a Formula 1 squad – after McLaren were valued at £3.5 billion in an adjustment to ownership structure last September.
Wolff, who owns a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a shareholding in the region of five percent.
The 53-year-old would stay on as team boss and CEO if the sale goes through.
Shareholder Structure
Remaining partners in the team are Mercedes-Benz and industrial group Ineos Group, who both hold one-third of the enterprise.
An official representative stated: "We will be making no official statement on this. The governance of the team stays unaltered, and each shareholder are fully committed to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in Formula One."
Financial Growth
The deal signifies a substantial rise in worth of Mercedes F1 since Ineos bought its stake for £208m in 2022.
The rise demonstrates the growth in valuations of F1 teams in the past few years due to the growing popularity of the sport globally.
This was also seen in the box-office performance of the F1 movie featuring Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and earned over $630 million (£458m) at cinemas worldwide.
It is the actor's top-grossing movie and the highest-earning sports movie to date.
Present Standings
The Mercedes team are runner-up in the team standings, trailing McLaren, with three Grands Prix left this season.
Their lead driver British driver George Russell has won 2 of the 21 races this year and is fourth in the individual standings after McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes won a record eight consecutive team titles and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, from 2014 to 2021.
