Toto Wolff is in final negotiations to sell a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
The deal estimates the Mercedes team at £4.6 billion – a record for an F1 team – after the McLaren team were valued at £3.5 billion in an adjustment to ownership structure in September.
Wolff, who holds one-third of Mercedes F1, would sell a stake approximately five percent.
The 53-year-old would stay on as team principal and chief executive officer should the deal proceed.
Ownership Structure
Remaining partners in the team are Mercedes-Benz and chemicals giant Ineos, who each also own one-third of the company.
A Mercedes spokesperson stated: "We will be making no official statement on this. The management structure of the team will remain unchanged, and all three partners are dedicated to continued achievements of the brand in F1."
Valuation Increase
The deal signifies a significant increase in worth of the Mercedes team after Ineos Group bought its stake for £208m in 2022.
The rise demonstrates the growth in market values of F1 teams recently as a consequence of the growing popularity of Formula 1 around the world.
This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the F1 movie featuring Brad Pitt, which was released last summer and earned over $630m (£458m) at cinemas worldwide.
It is the actor's top-grossing film and the most successful sports movie to date.
Present Standings
The Mercedes team are second in the constructors' championship, behind McLaren, with three races left in the current championship.
Mercedes' primary racer George Russell has secured victory in 2 of the 21 races so far and is fourth in the individual standings behind McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes secured a record eight straight team titles and seven driver championships, six for Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, from 2014 and 2021.
