Liberty Media Corporation has made official this Monday, April 1, the agreement for the acquisition of MotoGP. A historic alliance, which has been simmering for some time and will represent a new paradigm in the world of motorsport. And, for the first time, the two most important wheeled competitions on the planet will share the same owner.
The American company, which since 2016 has owned the exploitation rights to Formula 1, will buy 86% of Dorna Sport for an amount of 4.2 billion euros. The remaining 14% will remain in the hands of the current owners, with the Spanish Carmelo Ezpeleta at the helm, who will continue in his position as general director, while the company's headquarters will remain in Madrid. The operation should be completed by the end of 2024, as it is subject to approval by competition and foreign investment authorities in various jurisdictions.
“We are delighted to expand our portfolio of leading assets in live sports and entertainment with the acquisition of MotoGP,” explained the president and CEO of the North American corporation, Greg Maffei, in the joint statement issued by Liberty Media and Dorna Sport. «Carmelo and his management team have built a great sports spectacle that we can expand to a broader global audience. “The business has a significant upward trajectory and we intend to grow the sport for MotoGP fans, the teams, commercial partners and our shareholders.”
For his part, the CEO of Dorna was delighted with the new direction that the two-wheeled championship will take. «This is the perfect next step in the evolution of MotoGP and we are excited about what this milestone brings to Dorna, the MotoGP paddock and racing fans. We are proud of the global sport we have grown and this transaction is a testament to the value of sport today and its growth potential. “Liberty Media has an incredible track record in developing sporting assets and we couldn’t wish for a better partner to expand the MotoGP fan base around the world.”
Dorna became the exclusive owner of the commercial and television rights to the motorcycle world championship in 1991. Under his management the sport evolved to what is currently MotoGP, the premier class of the competition that also has the access categories of Moto2. and Moto3. In addition, the Spanish company also owns the rights to the electric world championship (MotoE), production motorcycles (Superbike) and the new women's world championship that will debut in 2024.
It is still too early to know what this historic agreement will mean for the MotoGP World Championship, although the fact that the current executive remains at the helm suggests continuity of the product or at least a sweet transition. For some time now there has been speculation about the possibility that an F1 and MotoGP grand prix could be held on the same weekend and on the same circuit, a tremendously complete challenge for safety reasons, but which is now closer to reality. materialize.
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