Formula 1 chiefs cool speculation of 12th team on grid
Formula 1 chiefs have cooled speculation that a 12th team could join the grid before the end of the decade.
The global motor sport series saw the number of teams rise from 10 to 11 earlier this season when Cadillac joined the grid, and FIA chief Mohammed Ben Sulayem has previously said he is open to a 12th team.
There have been reports surrounding the entry of Chinese electric vehicle giant BYD and the return of former Formula 1 boss Otmar Szafnauer, but it is understood that no formal bid – which comes with a £300m entry fee – has been made.
“Next season’s pretty impossible,” Formula 1’s chief communications and corporate relations officer, Liam Parker, told Morning Wire.
“These things take a while but if Company X was incredible and ticked all the boxes, the technical analysis can be very quick based on the competencies and the capabilities of people. I don’t want to put a timeline on it specifically because Cadillac was an example that took over a year and a half from confirmation.
“I’d also say that there’s a new regulation cycle with the V8 [engine] coming in 2030 or 2031. You don’t want to come in, build a car with this engine, spend all that money to build a car under this spec, and then two years later spend it all again – you’re running two parallel projects at the same cost to build that car in the next car.”
Formula 1 valuations soar
Team valuations are soaring, with even the cheapest of the 11 organisations worth over £1bn. Crystal Palace and New York Jets owner Woody Johnson recently purchased a 15 per cent stake in Aston Martin at a $3.5bn valuation while CrowdStrike boss George Kurtz took a less than five per cent slice in Mercedes at a monster $6bn valuation.
Other recent investors into the sport include the Qatar Investment Authority with Audi and Bahrain’s sovereign wealth fund, Mumtalakat, at McLaren.
A 12th team does not need the approval of the incumbents, Parker stated, adding that it is “a matter for us and the FIA to agree what’s right for the sport”.
“Cadillac just came in and they’ve got plans to continue to invest over the coming years with a potential GM power unit as well,” he added. “Sometimes it sounds petty because people look at our sport as a huge thing but going from 10 to 11, and then 11 to 12 – in terms of garage space, hospitality space, space in the pit lane, space in paddock – it is quite a headache for a number of our promoters.
Abu Dhabi finale?
“But Stefano [Domenicali, F1 chief] and Mohammed at the FIA have always been clear. If an offer came forward that would help grow the sport, help us grow in strategic markets, was an amazing brand and a proper investment – be it from an OEM [car maker] or a major brand – then of course we’d always look at it seriously.
“That doesn’t mean that the first person that says, ‘I want to be the 12th team’ will be successful or not, we’d have to see. You read every day that someone’s putting together a bid or there’s someone who wants to buy a team, and teams are turning down offers into the billions.”
Parker stated that the calendar is likely to stick at 24 races despite being allowed to hold 25 Grands Prix weekends – amid growing interest from the likes of South Korea, Thailand, Rwanda and Argentina to host races, which won’t come at the expense of the number of European races – and the organisation is still planning to conclude the season in Abu Dhabi.