Toto Wolff is engaged in advanced talks to offload a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
The deal values Mercedes at £4.6bn – a record for a Formula 1 squad – following the McLaren team were valued at £3.5bn in a change of ownership structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who holds a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, would sell a stake in the region of five percent.
Wolff, aged 53 would stay on as team principal and chief executive officer should the deal proceed.
Shareholder Structure
The other shareholders in the team are Mercedes-Benz and industrial group Ineos Group, who both hold one-third of the enterprise.
An official representative said: "We are providing no comment on this. The management structure of Mercedes F1 will remain unchanged, and all three partners are dedicated to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in F1."
Valuation Growth
The deal would represent a substantial rise in value of the Mercedes team since Ineos Group acquired its stake for £208 million in 2022.
The rise demonstrates the growth in valuations of F1 teams recently due to the increasing appeal of Formula 1 globally.
This was also seen in the success of the Formula 1 film starring Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and earned more than $630 million (£458m) at cinemas worldwide.
The film represents Pitt's most successful film and the most successful sports movie ever released.
Present Performance
Mercedes are second in the team standings, behind McLaren, with three races remaining this season.
Their lead driver British driver George Russell has won two of the 21 grands prix so far and is in fourth place in the drivers' championship after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes secured a record eight straight constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.
