Toto Wolff is in advanced talks to offload a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
This transaction estimates the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – a record for a Formula 1 squad – after McLaren was appraised at £3.5 billion in a change of ownership structure in September.
Wolff, who owns one-third of Mercedes F1, plans to divest a shareholding in the region of 5%.
Wolff, aged 53 would stay on as team boss and CEO if the sale goes through.
Shareholder Structure
Remaining partners in the team are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who each also own a third of the company.
A Mercedes spokesperson stated: "We will be making no official statement on this. The governance of Mercedes F1 stays unchanged, and all three partners are fully committed to the ongoing success of the brand in F1."
Valuation Increase
The deal would represent a significant increase in value of Mercedes F1 since Ineos acquired its stake for £208 million in 2022.
The rise demonstrates the expansion in valuations of Formula 1 outfits recently as a consequence of the increasing appeal of the sport globally.
This trend was evident with the success of the F1 movie starring Brad Pitt, which debuted last summer and earned over $630m (£458 million) at the box office.
It is Pitt's most successful film and the most successful sports movie to date.
Present Performance
The Mercedes team are runner-up in the team standings, behind McLaren Racing, with three races remaining in the current championship.
Their lead driver British driver George Russell has secured victory in 2 of the 21 races this year and is in fourth place in the individual standings after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes won a unprecedented eight consecutive team titles and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.
