Toto Wolff is engaged in advanced talks to offload part of his ownership stake in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
The deal values the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – after McLaren was appraised at £3.5bn in an adjustment to ownership structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who owns a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, would sell a shareholding in the region of 5%.
The 53-year-old would stay on as team boss and chief executive officer if the sale goes through.
Shareholder Structure
The other shareholders in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos Group, who each also own one-third of the enterprise.
An official representative said: "We are providing no comment on this. The governance of Mercedes F1 stays unchanged, and all three partners are fully committed to continued achievements of the brand in Formula One."
Financial Increase
This arrangement would represent a substantial rise in value of Mercedes F1 since Ineos bought its stake for £208 million in 2022.
The rise demonstrates the expansion in valuations of F1 teams in the past few years due to the growing popularity of the sport around the world.
This was also seen in the success of the Formula 1 film starring Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and has grossed over $630 million (£458 million) at the box office.
It is the actor's top-grossing movie and the most successful sports movie to date.
Current Performance
Mercedes are second in the team standings, behind McLaren, with three Grands Prix left this season.
Mercedes' primary racer George Russell has won two of the 21 races this year and is in fourth place in the drivers' championship after McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes won a unprecedented eight consecutive team titles and seven driver championships, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.
