Toto Wolff is in final negotiations to offload a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
The deal estimates Mercedes at £4.6bn – a record for an F1 team – after the McLaren team were valued at £3.5 billion in a change of corporate structure in September.
Wolff, who holds one-third of the Mercedes F1 operation, plans to divest a shareholding in the region of 5%.
The 53-year-old will remain as team principal and CEO should the deal proceed.
Ownership Structure
The other shareholders in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos, who each also own one-third of the enterprise.
A Mercedes spokesperson stated: "We are providing no official statement on the matter. The governance of Mercedes F1 stays unaltered, and each shareholder are fully committed to the ongoing success of the brand in Formula One."
Financial Increase
This arrangement would represent a significant increase in value of the Mercedes team since Ineos Group acquired its share for £208m in 2022.
The rise reflects the expansion in valuations of F1 teams in the past few years as a consequence of the increasing appeal of the sport around the world.
This was also seen in the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film featuring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released last summer and earned more than $630 million (£458m) at cinemas worldwide.
It is the actor's top-grossing movie and the most successful sports movie ever released.
Current Standings
The Mercedes team are runner-up in the team standings, trailing McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix remaining this season.
Their lead driver George Russell has secured victory in 2 of the 21 grands prix this year and is fourth in the individual standings after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
The team won a record eight consecutive team titles and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.
