Toto Wolff's Mercedes future becomes clear with mega-money deal to sell shares 'advanced'

Toto Wolff will reportedly remain in power at Mercedes, even if he manages to complete the sale of a portion of his stake in the Formula One team. The Austrian was appointed as team principal and chief executive in January 2013, replacing Norbert Haug.

Since taking the helm, he's helped Mercedes establish themselves as one of the powerhouses in a new era of motorsport. According to The Times, as first reported by Sportico, Wolff is currently in discussions to sell part of his 33 per cent share.

He initially only acquired a 30 per cent stake in the motorsport team, before purchasing an additional 3 per cent in December 2020. The remaining 66 per cent is split between Ineos and Mercedes-Benz.

The report claims that the proposed buyer, George Kurtz, would acquire about 5 per cent, which values the team at a record-breaking £4.6billion ($6bn). It's said that talks with the CrowdStrike chief executive are 'advanced'.

The Times have pointed out that Kurtz would be part of the holding company that owns Wolff's share, meaning voting power would be unaffected. Wolff will reportedly stay on as both team principal and chief executive officer of Mercedes, so the deal is thought to be purely financial.

A Mercedes statement said: "We will be making no comment on this. The governance of the team will remain unchanged, and all three partners [Mercedes-Benz, Toto and Ineos] are fully committed to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in Formula 1."

Mercedes have dominated the sport for a number of years, with that success leading to a huge valuation despite some of their setbacks in recent seasons. They're currently second in the constructors' championship, while their customer team, McLaren, have already claimed the title. Liberty Media can also be credited for the general growth of Formula One. The American company have transformed the demographic of supporters, making it one of the most popular sports among women.

The release of the F1 movie certainly helped, grossing more than £458million at the box office worldwide, as well as the immensely popular 'Drive to Survive' series on Netflix.

In an interview with The New York Times earlier this year, the president and CEO of Formula One commented on the sport's meteoric rise to mainstream entertainment. Stefano Domenicali said: "F1 racing is technology, but it has evolved into a world of entertainment, capturing new fans, new partners, new content, with the reward being massive in terms of revenues and growth, which have been tremendously strong in the last five years.

"Our younger audience is growing. We believe we are capturing fans who will become avid for the longer term.

"The health and attractiveness of our sport can also be witnessed by the fact we have never had so many partnerships. This, for me, is a sign that we are doing the right thing to be even stronger in the future."

Andrea Stella has claimed Domenicali should be acknowledged for his role in the sport's growth. Speaking at news conference in August, the McLaren team principal said: "The success of the Formula 1 business at the moment should not be taken for granted. Not all sports are having this kind of success across the board."