Mercedes team boss, Toto Wolff has bought a stake in Aston Martin worth an estimated £37m, Pitpass has learned... by reading Jonathon McEvoy's exclusive in the Daily Mail.

The stake is in the car manufacturer and has nothing to do with the F1 team currently racing (or not) as (t)Racing Point.

While his stake is worth 4.77% of the company, this will be diluted "following the pending rights issue", and will subsequently be worth 0.95%.

A spokesman for Mercedes insists that the move is purely financial, while adding that there is no conflict of interest.

Currently Aston Martin sponsors F1 rivals Red Bull, but that deal ends this year following Lawrence Stroll's buy-out of the British manufacturer and the decision to rename his own team accordingly.

Daimler, which supplies engines to Aston Martin has been a shareholder in the company since 2013, and is the manufacturer's largest supplier of parts.

It's understood that Wolff's investment was made with the full blessing of the Daimler board in Stuttgart.

While some sections of the media claim that the move will not affect Wolff's role at Mercedes, thereby ensuring that Lewis Hamilton will remain on board, Pitpass is yet to be convinced.

According to a Mercedes spokesman however, Wolff remains fully committed to Mercedes.