Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to offload a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
The deal estimates Mercedes at £4.6 billion – a record for a Formula 1 squad – after McLaren was appraised at £3.5bn in an adjustment to corporate structure last September.
Wolff, who owns a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a stake approximately 5%.
Wolff, aged 53 would stay on as team principal and chief executive officer should the deal proceed.
Shareholder Breakdown
The other shareholders in the team are Mercedes-Benz and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who both hold a third of the company.
A Mercedes spokesperson stated: "We will be making no official statement on the matter. The governance of Mercedes F1 stays unaltered, and each shareholder are fully committed to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in F1."
Valuation Increase
The deal would represent a substantial rise in value of the Mercedes team since Ineos acquired its share for £208 million in 2022.
This surge reflects the growth in valuations of Formula 1 outfits in the past few years due to the growing popularity of the sport around the world.
This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the F1 movie starring Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and earned over $630m (£458m) at the box office.
It is Pitt's most successful film and the highest-earning sports movie ever released.
Present Performance
Mercedes are second in the constructors' championship, behind McLaren, with three Grands Prix remaining this season.
Mercedes' primary racer George Russell has secured victory in 2 of the 21 grands prix so far and is fourth in the drivers' championship behind McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes secured a record eight straight team titles and seven driver championships, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.
