Audi's new adventure in Formula 1 seems well on its way to escaping Volkswagen's financial crisis, but under certain conditions which are becoming more and more demanding for the brand with the four rings.
It has emerged in recent days that, amid the ongoing VW crisis, Sauber's new 100% owner Audi could be about to sell up to half the F1 team for a tidy profit .
The purchase price by Audi of the Swiss team Sauber was 600 million euros. And the sale price of a minority share to Qatar's sovereign wealth fund, potentially involving title sponsorship by Qatar Airways, could bring in a billion euros for Audi.
As we reported this weekend, the agreement between Audi F1 and Qatar, which adds to the current participation of this Middle Eastern country in the Volkswagen group, could be announced during the Qatar Grand Prix , later this month.
But the German press has gone further in recent hours: Audi F1 could be forced to sell more than 50% of its team.
According to several information gathered by Bild, “The sheikhs are ready to invest up to 1 billion euros. If Qatar were to acquire more than 50 percent, the official name of the team could even change”. But a Mercedes F1 style deal could be put in place (Mercedes only owns a third of its team) so that Audi remains the main name on the FIA entry list.
The official name of the team could be Qatar Airways Audi F1. Audi has not yet made any comments following these latest rumors.
In Italy, the Gazzetta dello Sport confirms that these rumors are true but qualifies them: “The investment is initially expected to be a minority stake, with no change in name or key faces of the team.”
“But it cannot be ruled out that in the future the fund aims to take control of the majority of the team as well as the Audi engine plant in Neuburg, Germany.”
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