Toto Wolff is in advanced talks to offload a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
This transaction values Mercedes at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – after McLaren was appraised at £3.5 billion in a change of ownership structure last September.
The Austrian executive, who holds one-third of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a shareholding approximately five percent.
Wolff, aged 53 will remain as team principal and CEO if the sale goes through.
Ownership Structure
Remaining partners in the team are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who each also own one-third of the company.
A Mercedes spokesperson stated: "We are providing no official statement on this. The management structure of the team will remain unaltered, and each shareholder are dedicated to continued achievements of the brand in F1."
Financial Increase
This arrangement would represent a substantial rise in worth of Mercedes F1 after Ineos acquired its share for £208m in 2022.
This surge demonstrates the growth in market values of Formula 1 outfits recently as a consequence of the growing popularity of the sport around the world.
This was also seen in the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film featuring Brad Pitt, which debuted last summer and earned over $630m (£458m) at cinemas worldwide.
It is Pitt's most successful film and the most successful sports film to date.
Present Performance
The Mercedes team are second in the team standings, trailing McLaren, with three Grands Prix remaining in the current championship.
Mercedes' primary racer British driver George Russell has won two of the 21 grands prix this year and is fourth in the drivers' championship after McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
The team secured a record eight consecutive constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, from 2014 and 2021.
