Toto Wolff is engaged in advanced talks to sell a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
This transaction values the Mercedes team at £4.6 billion – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – following the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5bn in a change of ownership structure last September.
The Austrian executive, who holds one-third of Mercedes F1, would sell a shareholding approximately 5%.
Wolff, aged 53 would stay on as team principal and chief executive officer if the sale goes through.
Shareholder Breakdown
Remaining partners in the team are Mercedes-Benz and industrial group Ineos, who both hold one-third of the enterprise.
A Mercedes spokesperson stated: "We will be making no official statement on this. The management structure of Mercedes F1 stays unaltered, and all three partners are dedicated to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in F1."
Valuation Growth
The deal signifies a significant increase in value of the Mercedes team since Ineos Group bought its share for £208m in 2022.
The rise demonstrates the expansion in market values of F1 teams recently due to the increasing appeal of Formula 1 around the world.
This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the F1 movie starring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released last summer and has grossed over $630 million (£458m) at the box office.
It is Pitt's most successful movie and the most successful sports film to date.
Current Standings
The Mercedes team are runner-up in the constructors' championship, behind McLaren Racing, with three races remaining this season.
Their lead driver George Russell has won two of the 21 races this year and is in fourth place in the individual standings behind McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes won a unprecedented eight straight constructors' championships and seven driver championships, six for Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, from 2014 to 2021.
