While Formula 1 could also be struggling to invigorate the spectacle of racing amid one other anticipated 12 months of Red Bull dominance, one space it’s not struggling in is the off-track coffers. With extra races than ever earlier than, and the bumper earnings that go together with it, an inevitable side-effect is wandering eyes from afar. The sport’s governing physique, the FIA, has thus opened an “expressions of interest” course of in January for brand new potential groups to affix the present 10-team grid, maybe as quickly as 2025.
Enter Calvin Lo: a Hong Kong-based billionaire. CEO of R.E. Lee International, the world’s largest life insurance coverage dealer, the 45-year-old has been “hooked” on the game since glimpsing Michael Schumacher’s Ferrari on TV within the early 2000s. A visit to Shanghai for the primary Chinese Grand Prix in 2004 underlined that adoration. But now, spectating from the paddock isn’t sufficient.
“I’m having serious discussions about getting involved right now,” he tells The Independent, from an workplace in Singapore, with all of the paperwork mendacity in entrance of him. “There’s actually quite a few proposals in front of me right now to see how I can participate.
“F1 needs more teams. There’s too many talents in motorsport to not have more teams. But when I go through it, it is highly aspirational and absolutely, very ambitious. Still, I’d loved to be involved financially.”
But not at the price of his fame. Financial prudence and sustainability are on the forefront of his considering, with the prolonged FIA deadline for purposes closing on Sunday.
The entrance payment for any new group is $200m, shared by all the present groups. Mercedes boss Toto Wolff has beforehand remarked that $1bn is realistically required to combat on the entrance, a determine Lo agrees is “fair” given the fundamental prices of recruitment and automotive growth.
“I won’t get myself into that vicious cycle where I can’t hit those financial markers,” he says, adamantly.
“Putting money into the team is not the difficult part. It’s making sure it’s sustainable; otherwise it’s embarrassing for everyone. It’s very intricate, even with an established group of people, with all the sponsorship and the detail.
“But there’s so much potential in this part of the world – it’d be so advantageous to the Asian community and to the F1 ecosystem.”
Audi have already confirmed their entry in 2026, taking up from Alfa Romeo (Sauber), whereas American big Ford has partnered with Red Bull for the world champions’ new powertrains division.
While Lo was tight-lipped about naming potential partnerships, he did emphasise his eagerness to affix forces with a brand new group through the present FIA course of. Confirmed bids from Andretti Cadillac, in addition to a mooted submission from junior system outfit Hitech GP, had been dominated out.
An affiliation with Panthera Team Asia, subsequently, appears most possible at this level. Lo additionally has a monetary hyperlink with Williams’ F1 group, who had been purchased by personal funding agency Dorilton Capital practically three years in the past, however non-disclosure agreements preclude him from elaborating additional. He was insistent, nonetheless, that any new group wouldn’t current a battle of curiosity.
Instead, his new enterprise, doubtless based mostly out of Asia, can be his major focus. The continent is a “huge untapped market” for the game, in Lo’s view, amid the Americanisation of the game witnessed on the weekend in Miami. An academy for drivers and lecturers alike can also be a goal.
“To truly make F1 global, we cannot forget this part of the world,” he says. “There are races, but the penetration is not high and it’s wasted.
“I would love to have an Asian team with a base in the Pearl River Delta [the wealthiest region in south China]. The initial few seasons would be tough but it’s important for the sport to have more exposure and commitment here.
“It’d be great to have an academy here. Recruiting talents not just for F1, but aeronautics and legal avenues. For young people to be exposed to this kind of world, it could change someone’s life.
“With [F1’s new regulations in] 2026 and the net-zero target of 2030, now is the perfect time to be involved behind the scenes.”
Working within the shadows is simply how Lo operates. Widely publicised because the “secretive” or “under-the-radar” billionaire – who has a web price of $1.7bn (£1.3bn) in line with Forbes – he covets privateness, regardless of a profitable way of life which incorporates proudly owning a set of supercars and a group of tip-top champagne, with a single batch costing $230m.
“If I go into F1, you won’t see me,” he reveals. “It’s not my style. It’s also partly to do with my main business and working with clients.
“In my view, the wealthier you are… you don’t go out and flaunt it. Well some do, most don’t!”
McLaren CEO Zak Brown believes there can be a minimum of 4 potential groups enthusiastic about becoming a member of the game, whereas F1’s laws cater for less than two extra spots. Lo has been included in an preliminary software to play a monetary position – even when he gained’t be the face of stated new group – and the FIA intends on making a call about which groups can be granted a shot on the massive time by the tip of June.
“By 2026, it will be a different world we live in and it’d be pretty amazing to be part of that change,” he concludes. “It’s now about looking at all the plans and making a decision truly from a financial point of view.
“The skeleton is already there. It’s now just getting everyone to commit themselves.”
Source: www.impartial.co.uk