The prevalence of multi-year contracts among F1 drivers is explained in this issue of the Business of Motorsport. You will also hear why Rwanda thinks they deserve F1, the likelihood of the World Rally Championship returning to America and how IMSA is moving beyond convergence. All this and much more.
Motorsport Industry News
Formula 1
Rwanda is “prepared” and “committed” to hold a Formula 1 Grand Prix, says the president of the national automobile club, which governs motor sport in the country.
“It’s time for Africa to be part of the F1 calendar,” said Christian Gakwaya, president of the Rwanda Automobile Club, which organises motor racing in the country. “Rwanda as a country, we are committed and prepared to host a Formula 1 race. Our interest in Formula 1 aligns with the national strategy to leverage sports as a lever for economic transformation.”
Read more at Motorsport.com.
While Rwanda is trying to leverage sport to improve their image, Thailand is dealing with political unrest that could derail both their mooted F1 race in Bangkok as well as their Formula E race in Chiang Mai. The dismissal of Thailand’s Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin has caused significant doubts over the country’s future planned hosting of both races in the Formula 1 and Formula E championships. Mr Thavisin had been previously holding discussions with F1’s CEO Stefano Domenicali about the possibility of holding a Grand Prix on a street circuit in its capital city, Bangkok. Motorsport Week has more coverage.
FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem has said wording in the International Sporting Code has changed to allow stewards to “show strength” in clamping down on abuse. Ben Sulayem said research has shown a “direct link” between negative comments about officials and subsequent online hate, and he confirmed the definition of ‘misconduct’ within the rules has been changed to offer powers to protect against this. Read more at Planet F1.
Speaking of rule changes, McLaren CEO Zak Brown is seeking the removal of voting rights from F1 teams as part of the new Concorde Agreement.
“I’d like to see us get rid of majority votes and get to a simple 50% [threshold for passing] as something could get through because we’re all conflicted in some way at some point and the threshold for teams to be able to rally together and block something is there.”
RacingNews365 has more.
General Motorsport Industry News
The long-rumored World Rally Championship (WRC) event in the US is all but confirmed for the 2026 season according to BlackBook Motorsport.
“We have a great relationship with Tennessee, with Chattanooga, with Nashville, and there is significant support coming from there,” event director Simon Larkin stated. “The US is not like other markets where there is any government that will be willing to underwrite an event to the extent … that we require in other parts of the world, it’s never going to happen. Even if it’s not a profit maker, if it’s washing its face, brilliant.”
The Salzburgring is being considered as a hot candidate to make a comeback on the DTM calendar as early as 2025. ADAC Motorsport Director Thomas Voss already paid a visit to the Salzburgring in September of last year and is expected to make another trip to the track to evaluate its current condition. Autosport has more.
Stephen Kilbey of Racer explains how IMSA is moving beyond convergence with the ACO to raise sports car racing’s profile. “This astonishing era of convergence in sports car racing is peaking, and fast. Crowds are attending races in record numbers on almost a weekly basis and broadcast viewing figures are on an upward curve globally.” Read more at Racer.
NASCAR Holdings has agreed to another Netflix documentary, but exact plans remain unclear with the start of the playoffs just over a month away and as teams try to get a new charter agreement first, sources tell Sports Business Journal.
“While some teams have considered not participating in a documentary if a deal isn’t done by the playoffs, others disputed that they would hold out, and it’s possible the sides could still find a resolution before the playoffs begin to allow for the docu-series to happen.” Read more at Sports Business Journal.
Quick Takes on the Business of Motorsport This Week
- This Gigantic 814-Foot Cruise Ship Will Double as a Floating Hotel During the Monaco Grand Prix (Robb Report)
- Extensive restructuring begins at F1 Hungarian GP venue (Motorsport Week)
- Newly Appointed: EuroNASCAR Sporting and Technical Director Joe Balash (PRI)
- Billionaire’s extraordinary bid to keep Miller in MotoGP (SpeedCafe)
- Some Notes And Nuggets Involving Major League Baseball And Bristol
- Thrilling all-female WCR series deserves better (The Race)
- New WSX boss Tom Burwell outlines his plan to deliver a “world-class” supercross championship (BlackBook Motorsport)
- Will Buxton Breaks Down History Of Formula 1 In New Book, ‘Grand Prix’ (Forbes)
- Unveiling “Beast”: The Untold Story Behind the 1994 Indy 500’s Legendary Engine (Podium Life)
- AAA: From American motorsport sanctioning body to roadside assistance provider (Planet F1)
- 10 Valuable Mental Health Lessons We Can Learn From Formula 1 Drivers (Forbes)
- Supercars TV rights holder floats landmark sale (SpeedCafe)
The Numbers
NASCAR draws 2.2m viewers for Richmond despite clash with Olympics closing ceremony (BlackBook Motorsport)
Motorsport Law Roundup
A look at some of the legal and regulatory issues and analysis in Motorsport this week
While a disappointed Richard Childress Racing has indicated that they will appeal the ruling stripping their driver Austin Dillon of the points required for entry to the NASCAR playoffs, series senior vice president of competition Elton Sawyer explained that the correct decision is better than a fast decision.
“The number one thing is, we want to make sure we are protecting the integrity of our playoffs as well as our championship when we get to Phoenix,” Sawyer said. “We want to make sure our competitors understand that we want them to make all the decisions, we want them to be able to race hard, that’s what our sport has been about for 75 plus years. But we also want them to understand, and I believe that each and every one of them understands, that this crossed a line.”
Ever wonder why F1 drivers have so many multi-year contracts? Cambridge Kisby of Motorsport speaks to F1 contract lawyer Dan Chapman to find out why teams and drivers are opting for secrecy and security in the run up to 2026.
“Referring to a multi-year contract could be for various reasons, one of which could be that the contract is so full of one or two-way options, that to refer to the fixed-term duration would be largely meaningless,” Chapman told Motor Sport. “Teams are apprehensive about 2026. The view seems to be that it is a complete reset, perhaps something we have not seen since Brawn won the championship [in 2009].”
Read more at Motorsport.
Kavan Bakhda at LawInSport has written a comprehensive guide to Formula 1’s financial regulations and costs cap. The article explains how Formula 1’s financial regulations and cost cap work and discusses whether they are fit for purpose. Read the whole article over at LawInSport.
Motorsport Sponsorship & Partnership News
Here are the latest motorsport sponsorship deals, partnerships and related analysis that were announced this week
- Elliott to again highlight Desi9n to Drive program at Atlanta (Racer)
- Three-round sponsor switch for Winterbottom (SpeedCafe)
- NASCAR expands Crocs licensing deal to include HeyDude brand (BlackBook Motorsport)
- The New PUMA x Mercedes-AMG Motorsport Collection (Podium Life)
- F1 drivers who top every luxury brand’s media list! (Motorsport Hackers)
- Chip Ganassi Racing to utilize Roboze’s polymer technology in IndyCar Series (PMW)
- LMR Building Supplies speeds up motorsport sponsorship (Builders Merchants Journal)
- Why Sports Are Your Next Marketing Frontier (Lefty)
- Exclusive Interview with NEFT Vodka founder Jeff Mahony: Discover Why Paddock Club is the Ultimate Hub for Business Growth and Networking (Paddock Magazine)
- Big broadcast change-up for GT World Challenge Australia (SpeedCafe)
- Zak Brown has warned McLaren’s rivals that relying on title sponsors may be lucrative, but it is also “dangerous” (Planet F1)
The Business of Running a Race Team
MotorsportWeek.com was given an exclusive tour of Arrow McLaren’s new operations hub and was shown just how integral the trailer is for the three-car team both during a race weekend and away from the track.
“The trailer was designed from scratch by Arrow McLaren, is packed to the gills with technology, and has space for 37 team members to carry out all of the tasks required to run a successful race team. Referring to NTT DATA Strategy Control as a ‘trailer’ is almost misleading, because in reality it is a fully functional engineering office and control center on wheels.” Read more at Motorsport Week.
Feeder Series spoke to Campos Racing team manager Andreu Romera to understand how teams repair their cars after a crash and prepare them for the next session.
“We analyzed as fast as possible all the options and I think Adrián Campos, our team principal, did a good job also by moving quickly, politically talking and being sure that we can get any help from other teams. In this case, we were lucky that Palou had an extra car available,” Romera said. Read more at Feeder Series.
Team & Manufacturer News
Here is a roundup of the latest team news from around the world of motorsport
- FIA reveals teams entering inaugural FRegional World Cup in Macau (Formula Scout)
- The importance of Japanese teams returning to Macau (Japan Racing Insider)
- Salters: HRC’s Increased GTP Role the “Next Natural Step” (Sportscar365)
- Flying Lizard Confirms Sabo’s Mid-Season Switch to BMW (Sportscar365)
- New Teams Highlight Increased Road America Entry (Sportscar365)
- A Desert Winter – Century Motorsport’s Plans For The Upcoming Winter Season (Century Motorsport)
- F1 a “closed chapter” for Porsche after failed Red Bull bid (Autosport)
- Albon seeing Williams’ long-term progress (Autosport)
- How RB wants to pick up Red Bull’s baton as F1’s fun team (Autosport)
- AIM Motorsport withdraws from Super2 (SpeedCafe)
- Lapierre: Alpine Must Aspire to Fight Top Teams in 2025 (Sportscar365)
- BMW acquire key Suzuki MotoGP data for potential 2027 entry (Motorsport Week)
- VR46 Racing Team to receive full factory support from Ducati in MotoGP starting 2025 (PMW)
- How Komatsu is succeeding where Steiner failed on Haas F1 investment (Autosport Plus)
- Peugeot To Explore Further Developments For 9X8 For 2025 (Daily Sportscar)
- IndyCar: Montreal’s Michael Cannon Looking To Build Success With Foyt (Inside Track)
- EXCLER8 open to working with new BTCC teams (Touring Car Times)
- Flying Lizard on “Mad Scramble” in BMW M4 GT3 Switch (Sportscar365)
- What the future of Formula E’s uneasy alliance hinges on (The Race)
Motorsport Movers & Shakers
Studious, calm, industrious but never ostentatiously so, Aston Martin’s team principal Mike Krack took a long break from Formula 1 after beginning his career at Sauber. As Oleg Karpov discovers in his Autosport Plus feature, the man who polished the rough edges off Felipe Massa as a race engineer is now trying to do the same for an entire team.
“The regulations have changed a lot in between, so it’s hard to compare. But one of the biggest things is how aerodynamic surfaces have changed. Back then they were either round or square. Now every area is refined and there’s a radius to everything. That comes from the advancement of wind tunnel technology, visualisation techniques and also CFD [Computational Fluid Dynamics] because you can do a lot of geometry work which gives you the detail that maybe 15 years ago you couldn’t even do in terms of measurement and accuracy.”
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.
