After acquiring the commercial rights to Formula 1 from Bernie Ecclestone in 2017, Liberty Media is now set to take over MotoGP. The well-known American mass media company bought 86% of Dorna Sports, the Spanish company owned by Carmelo Ezpeleta, last April, in a deal worth $4.2 billion, part of which will be financed by selling $825 million worth of shares in Formula 1.
Liberty Media ready to transform MotoGP
Over the years, Formula 1 revenues have grown exponentially, surpassing the $3 billion mark last year, with a 20% increase already recorded in the second quarter of 2024 compared to the same period a year ago.
For Greg Maffei, the goal is to replicate this model in the premier motorcycle racing class: “When we announced the acquisition of MotoGP,” said the 64-year-old from New York at the Goldman Sachs Communacopia + Technology Conference, “we immediately had people calling us, saying: ‘I want to buy a team,’ including people like Lewis Hamilton.”
“They’ve seen what’s happened in Formula 1 and want to follow that path. We’ve had major distributors reach out, saying: ‘We want to be involved.’ Unfortunately, I had to tell them we can’t discuss it until we get EU approval, but we’d love to talk once we do.”
“I think there’s an opportunity at the championship level to leverage the changes that can be made. When it comes to teams, in general, they don’t have good cash flow. That’s not entirely true. NFL teams have it, but in general, we’re talking about much larger cash flow multiples, and we’re still a bit too traditional in wanting that volume of cash. Additionally, the ability to change dynamics, set the stage, and do the things you want is much better, easier, and more manageable at the championship level. It still takes time, but it’s possible at that level. At the team level, it’s much harder.” – he pointed out.
“I think MotoGP is, first and foremost, an incredibly exciting product,” Greg Maffei added. “I’m not sure if many of you have seen the races, but watching people ride bikes at 350 km/h, just 15 centimeters apart, is insane. The overtakes are incredibly impressive.” – the president and chief executive officer of Liberty Media added.
“Unfortunately, it’s an activity that’s too little known in the United States and the rest of the world. There’s interest in Asia and other places, but the real heart of this sport has been in Spain and Italy, and partly in France. I think there’s an opportunity to expand. We’ve seen what we were able to do with F1, telling the stories, humanizing them, making the narrative broader than just the cars and technology, but also about what the drivers were doing, what was happening behind the scenes, ensuring the world understood the scope of what was going on. But we also did a lot to improve the viewer experience, like enhancing what’s shown on screen and helping fans better understand the story. These are all things that can be implemented here in MotoGP as well.” – American businessman concluded.
Source: f1ingenerale
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