Toto Wolff is engaged in advanced talks to offload part of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
This transaction values the Mercedes team at £4.6 billion – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – after McLaren were valued at £3.5 billion in an adjustment to ownership structure in September.
Wolff, who owns one-third of Mercedes F1, would sell a shareholding approximately 5%.
Wolff, aged 53 would stay on as team principal and CEO if the sale goes through.
Shareholder Structure
Remaining partners in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes-Benz and chemicals giant Ineos, who each also own a third of the enterprise.
A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We will be making no official statement on the matter. The management structure of the team will remain unaltered, and each shareholder are fully committed to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in Formula One."
Valuation Increase
This arrangement signifies a substantial rise in worth of the Mercedes team after Ineos acquired its stake for £208m in 2022.
This surge demonstrates the expansion in market values of Formula 1 outfits in the past few years due to the increasing appeal of the sport globally.
This was also seen in the success of the Formula 1 film featuring Brad Pitt, which was released last summer and earned more than $630 million (£458m) at the box office.
The film represents Pitt's most successful film and the highest-earning sports film ever released.
Current Performance
Mercedes are runner-up in the team standings, behind McLaren, with three Grands Prix remaining in the current championship.
Mercedes' primary racer British driver George Russell has won 2 of the 21 races this year and is fourth in the individual standings after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
The team secured a record eight consecutive team titles and seven driver championships, six for Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, from 2014 to 2021.
