FIA President Mohammed ben Sulayem stuns F1 by claiming there is less than £16bn amid Saudi takeover talks
- FIA President Ben Sulayem tweeted that the series is not worth $20 billion (£16 billion).
- Liberty Media, the American owners of F1 since 2017, declined to comment
Formula 1 ruler Mohammed ben Sulayem caused astonishment within the sport with his commitment Twitter to claim the series wasn’t worth $20 billion — an intervention that raised questions about whether he’d overstepped his role as regulator.
The FIA President intervened via a three-part thread in response to a recent report that Saudi Arabia made an unsuccessful $20 billion (£16 billion) bid to buy Formula One a year ago.
Liberty Media, the American conglomerate that has owned F1 since 2017 when they completed a £6.4 billion takeover, declined to comment on the Bloomberg story.
F1 ruler Mohammed ben Sulayem took to Twitter to claim the series isn’t worth $20 billion
Despite the unverified nature of the claims, Ben Sulayem tweeted: “As the guardian of motorsport, the FIA, as a non-profit organization, is wary of the allegedly inflated $20 billion price tags being imposed on Formula One.
“Any prospective buyer is advised to use common sense, consider the greater good of the sport and come up with a clear, sustainable plan – not just big bucks.
‘It is our duty to assess what the future impact will be for promoters in terms of increased hosting fees and other commercial costs and any adverse impact this may have on fans.’
However, other senior Formula 1 figures privately questioned whether Ben Sulayem had overdone it by going public with his view on a commercial matter, as the FIA is supposed to regulate the sport rather than interfere with its business interests.
Formula 1 declined to comment.
