Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to offload a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
The deal estimates the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – a record for an F1 team – following McLaren was appraised at £3.5bn in a change of ownership structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who holds a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, plans to divest a shareholding approximately five percent.
The 53-year-old will remain as team principal and chief executive officer should the deal proceed.
Ownership Breakdown
The other shareholders in the team are Mercedes-Benz and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who each also own one-third of the company.
A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We are providing no comment on the matter. The management structure of the team will remain unchanged, and each shareholder are dedicated to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in Formula One."
Valuation Growth
This arrangement signifies a substantial rise in worth of the Mercedes team after Ineos Group acquired its share for £208m in 2022.
The rise reflects the growth in market values of F1 teams in the past few years due to the increasing appeal of the sport around the world.
This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the F1 movie featuring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and earned over $630m (£458 million) at cinemas worldwide.
The film represents Pitt's most successful film and the highest-earning sports film ever released.
Current Performance
Mercedes are second in the team standings, trailing McLaren, with three Grands Prix left in the current championship.
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's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes won a record eight straight constructors' championships and seven driver championships, six for Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, from 2014 and 2021.
