Toto Wolff is in advanced talks to offload a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
The deal estimates the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – a record for a Formula 1 squad – after the McLaren team were valued at £3.5bn in an adjustment to ownership structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who holds one-third of the Mercedes F1 operation, plans to divest a stake approximately five percent.
Wolff, aged 53 will remain as team principal and CEO if the sale goes through.
Ownership Structure
Remaining partners in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos, who each also own one-third of the company.
An official representative said: "We are providing no comment on the matter. The management structure of Mercedes F1 will remain unaltered, and each shareholder are fully committed to the ongoing success of the brand in Formula One."
Valuation Increase
The deal would represent a substantial rise in value of the Mercedes team after Ineos bought its stake for £208m in 2022.
The rise reflects the expansion in valuations of F1 teams in the past few years as a consequence of the growing popularity of the sport globally.
This was also seen in the success of the F1 movie featuring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which debuted last summer and has grossed more than $630m (£458 million) at the box office.
The film represents Pitt's most successful movie and the highest-earning sports movie ever released.
Present Performance
Mercedes are runner-up in the constructors' championship, behind McLaren, with three races remaining this season.
Their lead driver George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 grands prix so far 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 won a unprecedented eight straight team titles and seven driver championships, six for Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, from 2014 to 2021.
