Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to sell part of his shareholding in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
The deal estimates the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – after the McLaren team were valued at £3.5 billion in a change of ownership structure last September.
The Austrian executive, who holds one-third of the Mercedes F1 operation, plans to divest a shareholding in the region of five percent.
Wolff, aged 53 would stay on as team principal and chief executive officer if the sale goes through.
Shareholder Breakdown
The other shareholders in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes-Benz and chemicals giant Ineos, who both hold a third of the enterprise.
A Mercedes spokesperson stated: "We will be making no official statement on this. The management structure of Mercedes F1 will remain unchanged, and each shareholder are fully committed to continued achievements of the brand in F1."
Financial Increase
This arrangement would represent a substantial rise in worth of the Mercedes team since Ineos Group bought its stake for £208 million in 2022.
The rise reflects the expansion in valuations of F1 teams recently as a consequence of the growing popularity of Formula 1 around the world.
This was also seen in the success of the Formula 1 film starring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which debuted last summer and earned more than $630 million (£458 million) at the box office.
The film represents Pitt's most successful film and the highest-earning sports movie to date.
Present Standings
Mercedes are runner-up in the constructors' championship, trailing McLaren, with three Grands Prix left this season.
Their lead driver George Russell has secured victory in 2 of the 21 races so far and is fourth in the drivers' championship after McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
The team won a record eight straight constructors' championships and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.
