Toto Wolff is engaged in advanced talks to sell a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
The deal estimates Mercedes at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – following McLaren was appraised at £3.5bn in an adjustment to ownership structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who holds one-third of Mercedes F1, would sell a stake approximately five percent.
Wolff, aged 53 will remain as team boss and chief executive officer should the deal proceed.
Shareholder Breakdown
The other shareholders in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes-Benz and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who both hold a third of the company.
A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We will be making no comment on this. The governance of Mercedes F1 will remain unchanged, and each shareholder are dedicated to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in F1."
Valuation Growth
This arrangement would represent a significant increase in value of Mercedes F1 after Ineos bought its share for £208m in 2022.
The rise demonstrates the expansion in valuations of F1 teams recently as a consequence of the growing popularity of the sport globally.
This was also seen in the box-office performance of the F1 movie featuring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and earned over $630m (£458 million) at cinemas worldwide.
It is Pitt's most successful film 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 left this season.
Their lead driver George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 races so far and is in fourth place in the individual standings behind McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
The team secured a record eight straight team titles and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, from 2014 and 2021.
