Toto Wolff is engaged in advanced talks to sell a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
The deal values the Mercedes team at £4.6 billion – a record for a Formula 1 squad – after the McLaren team were valued at £3.5bn in an adjustment to ownership structure last September.
The Austrian executive, who owns one-third of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a stake in the region of five percent.
The 53-year-old will remain as team principal and CEO if the sale goes through.
Shareholder Structure
Remaining partners in the team are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos Group, who both hold a third of the enterprise.
An official representative said: "We are providing no official statement on the matter. The management structure of the team stays unchanged, and all three partners are fully committed to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in F1."
Valuation Increase
This arrangement signifies a substantial rise in value of the Mercedes team after Ineos Group acquired its stake for £208 million in 2022.
The rise reflects the growth in valuations of Formula 1 outfits recently due to the growing popularity of the sport around the world.
This trend was evident with the success of the F1 movie featuring Brad Pitt, which was released last summer and has grossed more than $630m (£458 million) at cinemas worldwide.
The film represents Pitt's most successful movie and the most successful sports film ever released.
Present Standings
Mercedes are second in the constructors' championship, behind McLaren, with three races remaining in the current championship.
Their lead 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's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes secured a unprecedented eight straight team titles and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.
