Toto Wolff is in final negotiations to sell a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
The deal values Mercedes at £4.6 billion – an unprecedented figure for an F1 team – after the McLaren team were valued at £3.5 billion in an adjustment to ownership structure last September.
The Austrian executive, who holds one-third of Mercedes F1, plans to divest 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 Breakdown
Remaining partners in the team are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos Group, who each also own one-third of the enterprise.
An official representative stated: "We will be making no official statement on this. The governance of Mercedes F1 will remain unchanged, and each shareholder are fully committed to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in F1."
Financial Growth
This arrangement signifies a substantial rise in worth of the Mercedes team since Ineos Group bought its stake for £208 million in 2022.
The rise demonstrates the expansion in valuations of Formula 1 outfits recently as a consequence of the increasing appeal of the sport around the world.
This was also seen in the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film featuring Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and has grossed over $630m (£458m) at the box office.
It is the actor's top-grossing film and the highest-earning sports film ever released.
Current Standings
The Mercedes team are runner-up in the constructors' championship, trailing McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix left in the current championship.
Their lead driver George Russell has won 2 of the 21 races so far and is in fourth place in the drivers' championship behind McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
The team secured a record eight straight constructors' championships and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, from 2014 to 2021.
