Liberty Media achieved what it set out to do when it formalized the process of buying the Formula 1 World Championship exploitation rights from venture capital fund CVC five years ago. Thanks to a super-aggressive strategy, the company has managed to conquer the North American market, a group that has always been skeptical about the complexity of the championship and its European roots and is now fully committed to the cause. The next season, which begins on March 5th in Bahrain, will be the longest in history with a total of 23 dates on the calendar, three of them on American soil (Austin, Miami and Las Vegas). As if that didn’t sufficiently illustrate the roots that F1 has achieved there, this Friday midday confirmed Ford’s return with a view to 2026, the date when it will supply the engines to Red Bull and Alpha Tauri. .
The Michigan giant, the third most successful motorcyclist in the ‘big circus’, with ten constructors’ titles and 13 pilots, is set to return to competition more than two decades after his split after completing the project he shared half with Jaguar (2004) and begin to focus on the World Rally Championship (WRC) and touring cars. The cat’s company then sold the entire racket to Red Bull, which managed to climb to the top thanks to the investment of industrial sums of money. Coincidentally, Ford and the energetic crew will be back in three years, as confirmed by the Red Buffalo team. The fact that the presentation of the new car of the world champion structure took place this Friday in New York led to the appearance of information indicating a possible re-entry of Ford into F1 by Red Bull. The event was attended by Max Verstappen, who has been crowned world champion for the past two years, along with Checo Pérez, his workshop neighbor, and Christian Horner, the team manager. Through this agreement, Ford will join forces with Red Bull Powertrains, the division of the Milton Keynes (UK) formation that develops the engines for the cars and currently has Honda support. This new chapter finally ends talks with Porsche, which was initially interested in buying 50% of Red Bull in an attempt that stalled after the summer.
Ford and Red Bull will work together on a 350 kW electric drive and the construction of a new internal combustion engine. “Ford’s return to Formula One with Red Bull Racing shows where we are headed as an increasingly electric company defined by software, modern vehicles and experiences,” said Jim Farley, Ford President and CEO incredible platform to innovate, share ideas and technology, and connect with tens of millions of new customers,” he added.
Max Verstappen poses with a Ford.Ford vehicle
Last week, Ford’s competition chief openly addressed the possibility of a return to the World Championship. “Formula One has been strengthened and growing, both in the United States and globally,” said Mark Rushbrook, head of the Dearborn brand, in an interview with Autosport. “Liberty did a good job generating convincing races. In addition, they have reached new audiences with Drive to Survive – the Netflix documentary series. As a company, we compete on innovation and technology transfer [a los coches de calle], but also for marketing reasons. All of this deserves attention,” the executive added, half-veiled awaiting this Friday’s announcement.
“This is the beginning of a new chapter in Ford’s racing history that began in my great-grandfather’s day [Henry Ford] He won a race—at a Detroit racetrack in 1901—that helped found our company. Ford is returning to the forefront of motorsport, bringing our rich heritage of innovation, sustainability and electrification to one of the world’s most visible showcases,” said Ford CEO Bill Ford in the official statement. “Ford is a global label with an incredible heritage in racing and the automotive sector and has seen great value in our platform,” added Stefano Domenicali, CEO of F1. Ford’s reappearance will coincide with the arrival on the scene of Audi, which this week completed the purchase of an equity stake in Sauber.
The FIA opens the process of registering new teams
The World Automobile Federation (FIA) on Thursday published the requirements that those candidates who want to qualify for one of the places that will be open to new teams from 2025 must meet. The FIA clarifies that the pre-selection criteria They will primarily focus on ensuring the commercial viability of the proposals. The evaluation process of the alternatives is expected to last until April 30th. This move by the body that regulates Formula 1 comes a month after the Andretti team announced its intention to ally itself with Cadillac for a hypothetical entry into the world championship.
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