Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to offload a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
This transaction values the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – following the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5 billion in a change of ownership structure last September.
The Austrian executive, who owns a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a shareholding in the region of five percent.
The 53-year-old would stay on as team boss and CEO should the deal proceed.
Shareholder Structure
Remaining partners in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who both hold a third of the company.
An official representative stated: "We will be making no official statement on the matter. The governance of the team stays unaltered, and each shareholder are dedicated to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in F1."
Valuation Growth
This arrangement would represent a substantial rise in worth of the Mercedes team after Ineos Group acquired its stake for £208m in 2022.
This surge reflects the expansion in market values of Formula 1 outfits recently due to the growing popularity of Formula 1 around the world.
This was also seen in the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film featuring Brad Pitt, which debuted last summer and has grossed over $630 million (£458m) at the box office.
The film represents Pitt's most successful film and the most successful sports movie ever released.
Present Standings
Mercedes are runner-up in the team standings, trailing McLaren, with three Grands Prix remaining this season.
Their lead driver George Russell has won two of the 21 races this year and is in fourth place in the drivers' championship behind McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
The team won a unprecedented eight consecutive constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.
