E.t was a ride in hell that has already made sports history. On the very last lap of the final race of the Formula 1 season in December, Max Verstappen overtook Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton in the Red Bull vehicle and literally snatched the world championship title from under his nose. Excitement, emotions and technology at the top level: These are the factors that inspire millions of fans around the world and that encourage racing teams like Red Bull or Mercedes to achieve top performance again and again. Since 2008, the winner has always come from one of these two teams. But a new, serious rival could soon take off: the Volkswagen Group.
In four years’ time, its subsidiaries Audi and Porsche will probably enter the battle for the title. The background is that the racing series should be semi-electric and CO2-neutral from 2026 onwards. In any case, this is what the new engine regulations that the World Automobile Federation (FIA) have decided on, and under these more climate-friendly conditions, the two premium brands could justify a very expensive Formula 1 commitment from the sustainability aspect. According to information from the FAZ, Audi and Porsche should not just be engine suppliers, but also start with their own racing teams. That’s a huge difference, not just in terms of reputation and advertising impact, but also in terms of financial expenses. The ongoing operations alone devour several hundred million euros every season for a top team. Only part of it comes back through sponsorship money.
Both Audi boss Markus Duesmann and his Porsche colleague Oliver Blume, who is no less enthusiastic about motorsport, are doing everything they can to stir up the most important international racing series. Audi and Porsche held preliminary talks with just a few teams. In the meantime, negotiations with the racing teams McLaren and Red Bull are well underway. Audi is reportedly on the verge of submitting an offer to McLaren boss Paul Walsh. Negotiations with McLaren owner Mumtalakat, the Bahraini sovereign wealth fund, were promising, they say. At the same time, Porsche is negotiating a close collaboration with Red Bull.
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In the end, the VW Group’s supervisory board will have to give its place, probably at the end of February. The committee should then meet to discuss the consolidated financial statements for 2021. The agenda will not be set until two weeks before the date, but it is clear that time is of the essence. At least from the point of view of Formula 1 boss Stefano Domenicali: The Italian motorsport official, who was still managing the VW brand Lamborghini two years ago, wants to conclude lucrative TV marketing contracts for a Formula 1 that has become more interesting thanks to Audi and Porsche. It’s about a lot of money. VW and the brands involved do not want to comment on the current status of the negotiations around Formula 1 upon request.
Audi wants to completely take over the Formula 1 company founded in 1963 by racing driver Bruce McLaren, which has also been producing road cars in series since 2010, is heard from Ingolstadt. The series sports cars are to be manufactured on the same platform that Audi also uses for the luxury brands Lamborghini and Bentley. It is helpful that Duesmann knows McLaren’s team boss, Andreas Seidl, well from their Formula 1 days with the BMW-Sauber team at the time. Things are much more difficult for Porsche boss Oliver Blume. Red Bull is endowed with plenty of self-confidence, not least thanks to Max Verstappen’s world championship title. The talks are ongoing, they say in Zuffenhausen, and not badly at all. Otherwise you keep a low profile. After all, prices go up if you acknowledge publicly too early. And Porsche wants to keep both options open: Get involved as a racing team or just as an engine supplier, as Honda is currently doing.
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