Liberty Media not looking to sell F1

In brief

Liberty Media not looking to sell F1

Formula 1 commercial rights holder Liberty Media is not looking to sell the series, its president and CEO Greg Maffei has said, following speculation earlier this year Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund was considering buying into it.

“Anyone says that our friends the Saudis are going to buy it next week or something like that, if anybody knows us, they should know that’s just not in our cards,” Maffei told the Moffett Nathanson Media and Communications Summit.

He said Liberty still sees opportunities to increase the income it makes from the series. “We are very enthused about where Formula 1 is now but [also] where it’s going as well. You look at the big revenue streams there, all have good direction. In broadcasting we have increased fans and we have increased distributors who want to push the product, including new digital distributors and the like. We have promoters who are our partners.

“The gate was probably [25%] up in Miami. That’s not unique. They’re selling out everywhere, particularly the high-end experiences, the Paddock Clubs, all at better prices. So we are able to get upticks in what we get paid. We have been able to add a few races and there’s maybe a little more room left there. And then sponsorship has grown dramatically. We’ve opened up the number of global sponsors. I think we’ve gone from five to 12 of our biggest sponsor types.

“We are continuing to see traction there and I think we’re well set up. We have a new opportunity with what we’re doing in Las Vegas where we will be the promoter and we have a opportunity to learn about something and hopefully set the bar.”

Verstappen headlines Redline simrace

Reigning Formula 1 world champion Max Verstappen will headline a special all-star simracing event on Sunday, hosted by his Team Redline simracing team mates.

After this weekend’s Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix was cancelled due to the impact of flooding in the region, the simracing team will stream a special ‘Real Racers Never Quit’ event online on Sunday. Verstappen will join his Redline team mates with guest racers including Formula E champion Antonio Felix da Costa, F2 champion Felipe Drugovich, Australian Supercars racer Shane van Gisbergen, F2 racer Jack Doohan and many Red Bull junior drivers such as Jak Crawford, Isack Hadjar and Ayumu Iwasa.

The event will begin tomorrow at 2:30pm UK time on Team Redline’s Twitch channel.

F1 to donate €1m to flood relief

Formula 1 will make a donation of €1m to the Emilia-Romagna Region’s Agency for Territorial Safety and Civil Protection to help people impacted by the flooding in the region.

The gift matches that pledged by Ferrari yesterday. F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali, who is from the region, offered his thoughts on behalf of the sport to people affected.

“The situation facing the communities in the region is terrible, but I know that the resilience and passion of the people in the region, like so many across Italy, will prevail through this crisis,” Domenicali said. “We must do everything we can to support them at this difficult time and that is why we are donating to help support the relief efforts on the ground.”

Anyone who wishes to donate to the fund can do so online.

Links

Motor racing links of interest:

Ferrari boss pitted against his mother in Agnelli inheritance drama (Reuters)

“The case stems from the estate of Gianni Agnelli, the celebrated Fiat boss who was a symbol of Italy’s post-war economic boom and died two decades ago. It pits Agnelli’s daughter Margherita, who inherited 1.2 billion euros ($1.3 billion), against three of her eight children including her eldest, John Elkann, the chairman of Ferrari and carmaker Stellantis.”

Nadal’s French Open withdrawal prompts message of hope from F1 star Carlos Sainz (Sportskeeda)

“Thus, when the Spaniard announced his withdrawal, the 28-year-old posted a picture of him in his Instagram story with the caption ”Ánimo LEYENDA! Estamos contigo”. It translates to: ”Cheer up LEGEND! We’re with you @rafaelnadal!”

Renault Leans Toward Making Alpine On Its Own, Not With Lotus (Bloomberg)

“Fans of the Alpine Formula 1 team, which over the past decades clinched numerous racing titles, including a 1978 win at Le Mans, will be converging in the brand’s hometown of Dieppe, France, this weekend to celebrate the victory of its first World Rally Championship 50 years ago.”

Zane Maloney on the moments that made him (F2)

“The biggest moment so far was probably Jeddah. learning a lot. That we can, even though we were really slow really struggling. I probably learned the most that weekend just on how put together a lap in Qualifying, how to race properly, how to manage these F2 tyres. That was a real learning weekend – no points, no top 15 but I learned a lot and it helped me bounce back in Australia.”

Three Engineers Honored with 2023 Louis Schwitzer Award for IndyCar’s Shell 100% Renewable Race Fuel (PR Newswire)

“Today at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS), BorgWarner celebrated three individuals – Selda Gunsel, Ph.D., Bassem Kheireddin, Ph.D. and Jung Fang, Ph.D. – who were honored with the 2023 Louis Schwitzer Award for their Shell 100% Renewable Race Fuel, which has been adopted by the IndyCar Series.”

How Do F1 Teams Design, Produce and Race an Upgrade? (Mercedes via YouTube)

Mercedes’ technical team explain the process behind designing and manufacturing upgrades for their cars.

Behind The Scenes, as Max Verstappen prepares to go racing (Max Verstappen via YouTube)

A behind-the-scenes video showing Verstappen’s pre-race preparation in Baku.

6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps | The Red Line (Ferrari via YouTube)

Behind-the-Scenes of Ferrari’s hypercar teams during the most recent round of the World Endurance Championship at Spa-Francorchamps.

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Tim Cindric just said @Team_Penske drivers will draw their own numbers for qualifying order after he drew a poor number for @josefnewgarden last year. “He’s making us do it,” JN said. Countered TC: “You guys VOLUNTEERED for it.” @IndyCar

— Curt Cavin (@curtcavin) May 19, 2023

SUPER FORMULA
Rd.4 AUTOPOLIS

オートポリス大会に出場を予定しておりました野尻智紀選手ですが、欠場いたしますことお知らせ致します。

詳細は添付をご確認下さい。#TEAMMUGEN #SFormula pic.twitter.com/3Kgeu2iEkT

— 無限MUGEN【公式】 (@mugen1973) May 19, 2023

Maybe you didn’t really understand what happened and what is happening in Emilia Romagna. F1 grand prix is ​​a very small thing

— Giuliano Duchessa (@GiulyDuchessa) May 19, 2023

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Happy birthday to Ned Flanders, Rui Pinto, Thed4N1El, Dirk and Andy!