Ecclestone reveals F1 controllers are on the brink of a sell-out
Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone, the astute overseer of the megarich sport’s continuous input of massive wealth, lets me in on a projected move that will set the grand prix cash registers ringing louder and reaping in even more money.
We are sharing a spartan spaghetti lunch in an exclusive restaurant a five-minute ride in his chauffeur-driven Mercedes limo from his ritzy HQ in London’s most fashionable park-side zone.
And he reveals that CVC Capital Partners, the investment company who keep him upfront, controllers of Formula One, are on the brink of a sensational sell-out.
Ecclestone, himself a treble-sterlingbillionaire and with a 5.3 per cent share of the grand prix business, sits with his customary blank expression as figures, mindboggling to the likes of me, roll in zeroes off his tongue. Since CVC’s $2 billion (Dh7.34 billion) take over of F1 in 2006, their annual profits have rarely dropped a dollar or so below $1.8 billion a year.
But now, for a reason only known to themselves, they are considering their sell-on and have triggered a surge of takeover ambition among a band of the world’s wealthiest tycoons and gilt-edged companies. The jostling of the moneyed bigshots behind the financial scenes worldwide is reaching peak levels and Ecclestone and CVC are being hassled and cajoled virtually every day.
Stephen Ross, the owner of Miami Dolphins, the NFL showcase side, has teamed up with Qatar Investors to enter a joint bid while the German sports media group Constantin Medien is also sniffing for a chance to snatch the spoils.
Countless rumours
A short while back it was rumoured — but not confirmed by the secretive and honourable Ecclestone — that a huge Chinese investment company, China Media Capital, had tapped up CVC asking for exclusive rights to negotiate with the 85-year-old, a wheelerdealer of considerable and historic skill.
CVC themselves have yet to make a decision on whether or not to sell, but with Ecclestone strongly hinting that it will do so before the March restart to the 2016 F1 campaign.
“I believe we will decide in the next few months,” he confirms, “and I hope we will know for sure before the start of the new season whether or not CVC are willing to do business. Then we can all relax and enjoy the spectacle.”
There have been countless rumours of a sell-out over the past couple of years, but for undisclosed reasons, maybe undervaluations by prospective buyers or too big an asking price by the owners, nothing has prevailed. The grand prix teams will be keeping an anxious eye on the outcome of Ecclestone’s hint of a sell-on.
They benefit with prize money to the tune of some 63 per cent of CVC’s annual profits. The remainder of the deluge of money stays in Bernie’s bosses’ bank account. I shall be watching or awaiting Ecclestone’s summons to HQ for the outcome from the sidelines.
Meanwhile, my Burning Rubber column is closing down until next season’s restart of the showcase sport. I’d like to say many thanks for your support, readers. Bye for now.