Toto Wolff is in advanced talks to offload part of his ownership stake in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
This transaction values Mercedes at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – following McLaren were valued at £3.5bn in a change of ownership structure in September.
Wolff, who holds one-third of Mercedes F1, would sell a stake approximately 5%.
Wolff, aged 53 will remain as team boss and CEO should the deal proceed.
Ownership Structure
The other shareholders in the team are Mercedes-Benz and industrial group Ineos, who each also own a third of the company.
An official representative said: "We will be making no comment on this. The management structure of the team stays unaltered, and all three partners are dedicated to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in Formula One."
Valuation Increase
The deal signifies a substantial rise in worth of the Mercedes team since Ineos Group acquired its stake for £208 million in 2022.
This surge reflects the expansion in valuations of Formula 1 outfits in the past few years due to the increasing appeal of the sport around the world.
This was also seen in the success of the F1 movie starring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which debuted last summer and earned more than $630m (£458 million) at the box office.
It is Pitt's most successful film and the highest-earning sports film ever released.
Present Standings
The Mercedes team are runner-up in the constructors' championship, trailing McLaren, with three races left in the current championship.
Mercedes' primary racer George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 races so far and is in fourth place in the individual standings behind McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes secured a record eight consecutive team titles and seven drivers' titles, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.
