Toto Wolff is in advanced talks to offload a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
This transaction values Mercedes at £4.6 billion – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – after McLaren was appraised at £3.5 billion in an adjustment to corporate structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who holds a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a stake approximately five percent.
The 53-year-old will remain as team boss and chief executive officer if the sale goes through.
Ownership Structure
Remaining partners in the team are Mercedes-Benz and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who each also own a third of the enterprise.
An official representative stated: "We will be making no official statement on the matter. The management structure of the team will remain unchanged, and each shareholder are fully committed to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in F1."
Financial Growth
The deal would represent a substantial rise in value of Mercedes F1 since Ineos acquired its share for £208 million in 2022.
The rise reflects the expansion in market values of F1 teams in the past few years due to the increasing appeal of Formula 1 globally.
This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the F1 movie starring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and earned more than $630 million (£458 million) at cinemas worldwide.
The film represents Pitt's most successful film and the most successful sports movie to date.
Current Performance
Mercedes are second in the team standings, behind McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix left in the current championship.
Their lead driver British driver George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 grands prix 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 record eight consecutive constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, from 2014 and 2021.
