Is F1 buyout finally going to cross the line?

If Bernie Ecclestone is to be believed, the owners of Formula One are finally closing in on a long-rumoured buyout.

Speaking in Sochi ahead of the Russian grand prix this weekend, Ecclestone told journalists that "there are three parties at the moment" lining up buyout bids. The sport's chief executive added he "would be surprised if one of them did not buy [the shares] shortly", saying a deal was likely before the end of this year.

Sales chatter has been ongoing for months. Takeover discussions with, among others, a consortium led by Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross and featuring the Qatari sovereign wealth fund, were officially acknowledged in July. At that time a figure of £5bn was put on the deal, which was thought likely to result in Ecclestone stepping back from his role at the head of the sport.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

The Financial Times says sources close to Ross believe the 75-year-old has "shaken hands" with private equity firm CVC, the largest Formula One shareholder, on a deal worth $8.5bn (£5.6bn). The consortium is thought to be undertaking due diligence and still needs to raise a large slice of the financing.

CVC has owned F1 since 2006 – a long time by the standards of private equity. But The Guardian says it still may not be in a rush to offload an asset that at already returned an estimated 350 per cent of the original investment. CVC's co-chairman, Donald Mackenzie, said in July: "We like owning it, we don't want to sell it".

In fact, the Guardian remains unconvinced that a deal will be forthcoming, saying many insiders believe that "until a sale is more than just another quote from Bernie, that is all the substance it possesses".

Regardless of the sale, a bigger question of fans is the location of future grand prix, not least the British one. Despite a sellout weekend in 2015 and strong sales for 2016, the venue has said it needs a £15m investment to secure the event.

Ecclestone has said the UK Government should stump up the cash. But as the track's financial problems are in part caused by the £15m it pays to Ecclestone's organisation, this advice is unlikely to be warmly received.

Race to buy F1 hots up as title race moves to Silverstone

3 July

A race to buy F1 looks set to be fiercely fought among a number of tightly matched teams – which is more than can be said for the sport itself at the moment.

In the run-up to the British Grand Prix at Silverstone, hopes are high among the home crowd that reigning champion Lewis Hamilton can regain the initiative, after losing three out of the last four races to his Mercedes team mate and title rival Nico Rosberg.

Whichever driver comes out on top, the 'silver arrows' look set to extend an already formidable lead in the constructors' championship. Mercedes' lead stands at 150 points after just eight races, and has provoked claims that the sport is in crisis.

Away from the track, it was revealed last week that a combined bid from Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross and Qatari investors, which the Daily Mail says could be worth as much as £5bn, could result in long-time boss Bernie Ecclestone forfeiting his ownership stake and stepping back from the sport.

The Sunday Times says other bidders include Sky and Virgin Media owner Liberty Global, which have long coveted the sport. It adds the initial revelation of takeover talks was "expected to flush out rival offers in the coming months… with a bidding war expected."

Formula One's major shareholder is private equity firm CVC Capital Partners, which invested around $1bn (£640m) in 2006 alongside loans from RBS in a deal worth in excess of $2bn.

A sale of shares in 2012 and a refinancing of debt is already thought to have made the group a 350 per cent return, with a sale potentially pushing this above 750 per cent and making it one of the group's most profitable investments ever.

For fans, the big question remains how to restore excitement to a sport which has been dominated by Mercedes for two seasons, and in which big guns like Red Bull and McLaren have been left behind by the latest raft of rule changes.

A fan survey of more than 200,000 people found nearly nine in ten believe the sport needs to be made more competitive. The Guardian says the results coincided with a meeting among top teams and the governing body, which was considering proposals from 2017 "to make the cars faster, louder, harder to drive and more aggressive-looking".