Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to offload part of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
This transaction estimates Mercedes at £4.6 billion – a record for a Formula 1 squad – following the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5bn in a change of corporate structure last September.
Wolff, who holds one-third of Mercedes F1, would sell a stake in the region of five percent.
Wolff, aged 53 would stay on as team boss and chief executive officer if the sale goes through.
Shareholder Structure
Remaining partners in the team are Mercedes-Benz and industrial group Ineos Group, who each also own a third of the company.
A Mercedes spokesperson stated: "We will be making no comment on this. The management structure of the team stays unaltered, and each shareholder are fully committed to the ongoing success of the brand in F1."
Valuation Increase
This arrangement signifies a substantial rise in value of Mercedes F1 since Ineos bought its share for £208 million in 2022.
The rise demonstrates the growth in market values of Formula 1 outfits recently due to the increasing appeal of Formula 1 globally.
This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film featuring Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and earned more than $630m (£458m) at the box office.
The film represents Pitt's most successful movie and the highest-earning sports movie to date.
Current Performance
The Mercedes team are second in the constructors' championship, behind McLaren, with three Grands Prix remaining in the current championship.
Their lead driver British driver George Russell has won two of the 21 grands prix this year and is in fourth place in the individual standings after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
The team secured a unprecedented eight consecutive team titles and seven driver championships, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.
