Toto Wolff is engaged in advanced talks to offload a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
This transaction values Mercedes at £4.6 billion – a record for a Formula 1 squad – following McLaren was appraised at £3.5 billion in a change of ownership structure last September.
The Austrian executive, who holds one-third of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a shareholding in the region of five percent.
Wolff, aged 53 will remain as team principal and CEO if the sale goes through.
Ownership Structure
Remaining partners in the team are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos, who both hold one-third of the company.
A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We are providing no comment on the matter. The governance of the team will remain unchanged, and each shareholder are dedicated to the ongoing success of the brand in Formula One."
Valuation Increase
The deal signifies a substantial rise in value of Mercedes F1 after Ineos Group bought its share for £208m in 2022.
The rise reflects the expansion in valuations of F1 teams in the past few years due to the increasing appeal of Formula 1 globally.
This was also seen in the success of the F1 movie featuring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which debuted last summer and earned more than $630m (£458m) at the box office.
It is Pitt's most successful movie and the most successful sports film ever released.
Present Performance
The Mercedes team are second in the constructors' championship, behind McLaren Racing, with three races remaining this season.
Their lead driver British driver George Russell has won 2 of the 21 races so far and is fourth in the drivers' championship after McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
The team secured a unprecedented eight straight constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.
