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 – following the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5bn in an adjustment to corporate structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who owns a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, plans to divest a shareholding approximately 5%.
The 53-year-old will remain as team principal and CEO if the sale goes through.
Ownership Structure
Remaining partners in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos, who each also own a third of the company.
A Mercedes spokesperson stated: "We are providing no official statement on this. The governance of the team will remain unchanged, and each shareholder are fully committed to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in F1."
Financial Increase
This arrangement would represent a substantial rise in worth of the Mercedes team after Ineos Group bought its share for £208m in 2022.
This surge reflects the growth in market values of F1 teams in the past few years as a consequence of the increasing appeal of Formula 1 around the world.
This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film starring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and earned over $630 million (£458 million) at cinemas worldwide.
The film represents Pitt's most successful movie and the highest-earning sports film to date.
Current 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 won two of the 21 grands prix this year and is in fourth place in the drivers' championship after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
The team secured a unprecedented eight consecutive team titles and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.
