Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to sell part 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 corporate structure in September.
Wolff, who holds a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a shareholding approximately five percent.
The 53-year-old will remain as team boss and chief executive officer should the deal proceed.
Shareholder Breakdown
The other shareholders in the team are Mercedes-Benz and industrial group Ineos Group, who each also own a third of the enterprise.
A Mercedes spokesperson stated: "We will be making no comment on the matter. The governance of the team stays unchanged, and each shareholder are fully committed to continued achievements of the brand in Formula One."
Valuation Growth
This arrangement signifies a substantial rise in worth of Mercedes F1 after Ineos Group bought its share for £208m in 2022.
The rise demonstrates the expansion in valuations of Formula 1 outfits in the past few years as a consequence of the growing popularity of the sport globally.
This was also seen in the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film starring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which debuted last summer and has grossed over $630 million (£458 million) at the box office.
The film represents Pitt's most successful film and the most successful sports movie ever released.
Present Standings
Mercedes are second 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 grands prix this year and is fourth in the drivers' championship after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes won a unprecedented eight straight constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.
