Toto Wolff is engaged in advanced talks to offload a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
This transaction values the Mercedes team at £4.6 billion – a record for an F1 team – after the McLaren team were valued at £3.5bn in a change of ownership structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who owns a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, plans to divest a stake approximately five percent.
Wolff, aged 53 would stay on as team boss and CEO 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 company.
A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We will be making no official statement on this. The governance of Mercedes F1 will remain unaltered, and each shareholder are dedicated to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in F1."
Valuation Growth
This arrangement signifies a significant increase in value of Mercedes F1 since Ineos bought its stake for £208m in 2022.
The rise reflects the growth in market values of Formula 1 outfits recently as a consequence of the growing popularity of Formula 1 globally.
This was also seen in the box-office performance of the F1 movie starring Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and earned over $630 million (£458 million) at the box office.
It is Pitt's most successful film and the highest-earning sports film ever released.
Current Standings
The Mercedes team are second in the constructors' championship, behind McLaren, with three races left in the current championship.
Mercedes' primary racer George Russell has won two of the 21 races this year and is in fourth place in the individual standings after McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
The team won a unprecedented eight consecutive constructors' championships and seven driver championships, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, from 2014 to 2021.
