Toto Wolff is in advanced talks to offload part of his ownership stake in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
This transaction estimates Mercedes at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – following the McLaren team were valued at £3.5 billion in an adjustment to corporate structure last September.
Wolff, who holds a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, would sell a stake approximately 5%.
Wolff, aged 53 will remain as team boss and CEO if the sale goes through.
Ownership Breakdown
The other shareholders in the team are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos Group, who each also own a third of the enterprise.
A Mercedes spokesperson stated: "We are providing no comment on this. The governance of the team stays unchanged, and each shareholder are fully committed to continued achievements of the brand in Formula One."
Financial Increase
The deal would represent a significant increase in value of the Mercedes team after Ineos acquired its stake for £208m in 2022.
This surge demonstrates the growth in valuations of F1 teams in the past few years due to the growing popularity of Formula 1 around the world.
This trend was evident with the success of the F1 movie featuring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released last summer and earned more than $630m (£458 million) at the box office.
The film represents Pitt's most successful film and the most successful sports movie to date.
Present Performance
Mercedes are second in the constructors' championship, trailing McLaren, with three races left this season.
Mercedes' primary racer British driver George Russell has won 2 of the 21 grands prix this year and is in fourth place in the individual standings behind McLaren drivers 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 won by Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, from 2014 and 2021.
