Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to offload a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
The deal estimates the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for an F1 team – following McLaren were valued at £3.5bn in a change of ownership structure last September.
The Austrian executive, who owns one-third of Mercedes F1, would sell a shareholding approximately five percent.
Wolff, aged 53 would stay on as team boss and CEO should the deal proceed.
Shareholder Structure
The other shareholders in the team are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos, who each also own a third of the enterprise.
A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We will be making no comment on the matter. The management structure of Mercedes F1 stays unchanged, and all three partners are dedicated to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in F1."
Valuation Increase
The deal would represent a substantial rise in worth of Mercedes F1 after Ineos Group acquired its share for £208m in 2022.
The rise reflects the growth in valuations of Formula 1 outfits recently as a consequence of the growing popularity of Formula 1 around the world.
This was also seen in the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film starring Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and earned more than $630m (£458 million) at the box office.
The film represents Pitt's most successful film and the highest-earning sports movie to date.
Current Standings
The Mercedes team are second in the constructors' championship, trailing McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix left in the current championship.
Mercedes' primary racer George Russell has won 2 of the 21 races so far and is in fourth place in the individual standings after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes won a unprecedented eight consecutive constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, from 2014 and 2021.
