Intense Negotiations Ongoing for F1 Concorde Agreement

Intense negotiations are ongoing for F1’s Concorde Agreement and this week’s Business of Motorsport will bring you up to speed. I also have news on the continuing debate over the future of the Monaco Grand Prix, Lola’s plans in Formula E and beyond, the future of Liberty and MotoGP and more motorsport-related legal news. All this and more in this week’s edition of the Business of Motorsport Roundup on Motorsport Prospects.

Motorsport Industry News

Formula 1

Intense Negotiations Ongoing for F1 Concorde Agreement

As negotiations over the 2026 Concorde Agreement heat up, Liberty Media CEO Greg Maffei anticipates there will be difficult negotiations with the teams when it comes to renewing the agreement with Maffei expecting the teams to demand more money.

“The teams and we will surely arm wrestle over numbers. You know, the teams would like more money, I wouldn’t be stunned, and we might want more money, they shouldn’t be surprised. That’s going to happen.”

The teams also don’t want their revenue diluted so discussions about increasing the infamous dilution fee for any team are also being discussed.

Autosport has learned that as part of the draft proposals sent to teams as a starting point for the Concorde Agreement discussion, a new dilution fund idea has been proposed.

Rather than it being a set figure, a formula has been proposed that will work to compensate the current competitors over a set period – believed to be five years.

It is understood that the initial figure that has been proposed totals the equivalent of $600 million for a team that wants to join in 2026, rising to $700 million from 2028.

F1 discussing new team $600 million dilution fund formula

Liberty Media CEO Greg Maffei has revealed there has been a “big push” by Thailand and South Korea to join the F1 calendar, as well as Indonesia holding interest at different times but South Africa is facing hurdles after almost happening.

“We went a long way down the road with South Africa. We were not able to put that deal together, we were not able to make that work, but continue to look.”

Liberty Media admits it got “lucky” to take over a Formula 1 from Bernie Ecclestone that was deliberately neglecting social media and not exploiting the full potential it offered. “Bernie deserves massive credit for what he built with the sport, an unbelievable genius,” he said. “But things change.”

In what appears to be a major shift in opinion, FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem is now saying that Michael Andretti should buy a current F1 team instead of aiming to be the 11th team on the grid. “I would advise them [Andretti Cadillac] to go and buy another team, not to come as the 11th team.”

Formula 1 chiefs will retain the core hallmarks of the Las Vegas Grand Prix but have promised to be smarter, more efficient, and make more general admission tickets available in 2024.

“I expect we will learn to optimize and do things more efficiently. In some cases we moved so quickly, I credit Las Vegas for the help they gave us, to get that race literally from zero, in 15 months, is just amazing. I think we’ll be smarter, we’ll be more efficient, we’ll probably be less disruptive to the community, we’ll probably understand better and better what fans want.”

Monaco Grand Prix

Despite a record live audience, every year in the run-up to and after the conclusion of the Monaco Grand Prix, people fall all over thmselves explaining why the race should or should not remain on the calendar. Here is a snapshot of opinions on why the race should remain.

General Motorsport Industry News

Lola Yamaha

With the news that new Formula E entrant Lola has committed to the Gen4 era until at least 2030, according to Motorsport Week, a shakedown of their Gen 3 car is imminent. While The Race has the inside story on how the Lola came to pass, Autosport explains how Formula E’s open-door approach to manufacturers is paying off.

“I’ve always said the balance is between five and seven. Five feels like the bottom end of the range, once you start to go above seven it starts to feel like if you’ve only got 11 or 12 teams, it means there are going to be half of them which only have one powertrain in the championship. That feels like it’s starting to become untenable.”

While MotoGP has confirmed that they will be racing at the Red Bull Ring in Austria until 2030, the future of the Indian Grand Prix remains questionable as the 2024 race has been cancelled and been replaced with Kazakhstan. The Indian promoters are planning in returning in 2025.

“The decision to move the race to March of next year, aiming for the first or second week, was a collective agreement among all stakeholders,” said Fairstreet Sports CEO Pushkar Nath Srivastava in a statement received by Autosport.

Continuing with MotoGP, the United States Department of Justice has sued Live Nation over allegations of operating an illegal monopoly. As Live Nation is owned by Liberty Media, there is some concern that the lawsuit may threaten Liberty’s ability to buy the commercial rights to MotoGP. Liberty do not feel the same concern.

“So I think when you factor in that we are going to engage very quickly with the regulators, making all the points that Greg just very clearly articulated, and also just noting the changes in the media landscape over the last 20 years, we’re pretty confident we can get this done quickly and get the transaction cleared.”

Penske Entertainment met with IndyCar’s independent team owners on the Thursday before the Indy 500 to cover a wide range of topics, including the new charter program it has been formulating throughout the year and future engine and chassis strategies that could be implemented as early as 2027.

“It was a positive discussion where a number of priorities and upcoming items were discussed,” a Penske Entertainment representative told RACER. “We received some very helpful feedback from the group.”

Motorsport Ireland has revealed there remains the opportunity to host a World Rally Championship (WRC) event in 2026. “Aiden Harper, president of Motorsport Ireland, said: “This is a progressive step in Motorsport Ireland’s plans to bring the World Rally Championship back to this island. Over the last month we have had constructive discussions with Minister Byrne and the WRC Promoter and we look forward to assisting Department officials with any additional information they require while carrying out their analysis.”

In other WRC news, the series has signed a ten-year agreement to race in Saudi Arabia from next year. The long-term agreement represents the championship’s return to the Middle East, having not raced in the region since the 2011 Rally Jordan.

Supercars owner Racing Australia Consolidated Enterprise (RACE) has reported an increase in both revenue and earnings from its 2023 financial results. They are also talking expansion of the series both domestically and internationally.

“There’s an absolute recognition that we need to keep growing the sport, racing more – having more events, that means, in a domestic environment and also the consideration of our international plans,” RACE and Supercars chairman Barclay Nettlefold told the media.

Motorsport Prospects on the Slipstream Entrepreneurs' Podcast

In Motorsport Prospects news, I was thrilled to be interviewed for a recent episode of the Slipstream Entrepreneurs’ Podcast. The episode dives into the mission of Motorsport Prospects and my quest to develop a tool that connects race drivers with the motorsport professionals that can help them build a successful racing career. You can listen to the episode here.

Race promoters explain to PRI the massive logistical operation required to bring a successful street race to life. “Street course racing is where you can take the race to the people,” said Kim Green, chairman and CEO of Green Savoree Racing Promotions (GSRP), Carmel, Indiana. “It becomes more than just the race; it becomes an event if you can do it properly.”

World Rallycross (World RX) is targeting a street race in Coventry as early as 2025 according to BlackBook Motorsport. The series is in discussions with MotoFest Coventry with a view to a race next year and Driven International has already conducted a feasibility study and determined a race can be held on the city streets.

Japan Racing Insider asks the question, is Super Formula’s quest to become more popular succeeding? “It’s been just over a year since Masahiko Kondo took over as chairman of JRP, the promoter of Super Formula. Last year, Kondo faced up to the fact that the Japanese single-seater series was not the force it once was, and boldly set out his goal for recreating the levels of popularity seen in the Japanese Formula 2 and Formula 3000 eras. “To have full grandstands for Super Formula races is my dream,” he said.”

Quick Takes on the Business of Motorsport This Week

Business of Motorsport

The Numbers

Business of Motorsport

Motorsport Law Roundup

A look at some of the legal and regulatory issues and analysis in Motorsport this week

Business of Motorsport

The first ever United Against Online Abuse Conference has taken place, bringing together international sporting federations, politicians, and tech companies. FIA President, Mohammed Ben Sulayem, said: “I thank all who have pledged their support for this coalition and urge the wider global community to come together and join us in this important fight.”

Experts from across the sporting, political, and social worlds have joined forces and pledged their support to the groundbreaking United Against Online Abuse coalition. Attendees included representatives of World Rugby, the International Tennis Federation and ATP Tour, soccer body FIFA and France’s minister for sport and the Olympics Amelie Oudea-Castera.

Amélie Oudéa-Castéra, French Government Minister for Sport and the Olympic and Paralympic Games of France, sent a message of support to start the conference, stating: “Performance [in sport] cannot be at any price. The well-being of the athletes, their development, and their serenity as human beings… must be a priority. That is why my ministry has signed the United Against Online Abuse charter.”

The Centre for Sport and Human Rights, based in Switzerland, has launched the Human Rights Playbook series, which aims to empower sport bodies to make robust human rights commitments.

The series has been developed with the support of the Swiss Government, and features two new guidance documents that build on the Centre’s flagship 2018 guide Championing Human Rights in the Governance of Sport Bodies.

David Grevemberg, Chief Innovation and Partnerships Officer of the Centre for Sport and Human Rights, who co-chaired the working group that drafted the original guide, commented: “These guides are a beacon of support for federations of any size at all levels embarking on their human rights journey.

“By offering a step-by-step approach, they build on the 2018 guidance, ensuring that sport bodies are equipped with practical expertise and guidance at every stage to respect, protect and promote human rights. The collective wisdom encapsulated in these guides is now accessible to all with the potential to drive a new era of human-centric leadership in sports governance that addresses complex real-world challenges and harnesses emerging opportunities.”

Jimmie McMillian

Check out the May 15th, 2024 episode of the Indiana Lawyer Podcast featuring Chief Diversity Officer & Senior Corporate Counsel at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Jimmie McMillian. Click here to listen: https://www.theindianalawyer.com/podcast

Motorsport Sponsorship & Partnership News

Here are the latest motorsport sponsorship deals, partnerships and related analysis that were announced this week

Williams-Duracell
Intense Negotiations Ongoing for F1 Concorde Agreement
Intense Negotiations Ongoing for F1 Concorde Agreement
Sustainable Motorsport Sponsorship

Team & Manufacturer News

Here is a roundup of the latest team news from around the world of motorsport

Business of Motorsport
Business of Motorsport
Mark Boudreau
Author: Mark Boudreau

Mark is the publisher of Motorsport Prospects. As a former lawyer, he applies his legal background and research skills to assist race drivers by showcasing the resources they need to make their motorsport careers happen.