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Ferrari considering buying into F1 – Marchionne

Ferrari could be the first F1 team to take up Liberty Media’s offer of shares in the sport.

We have reported that despite Liberty’s eagerness for the teams to take up to 20 per cent of the commercial rights, none have accepted the offer so far mainly because it would not include the power to vote.

But Ferrari president Sergio Marchionne is now quoted by the Italian media as revealing that the Maranello marque is “considering the opportunity to take shares” in F1.

“We will discuss it with the new owners,” he said.

Marchionne said a major consideration in his deliberations will be the future of the sport beyond the current contracts that stretch to 2020.

“It is not a financial issue,” said the Italian-Canadian.  “It would be unwise to invest without having clarity about what will happen after 2020 and what Ferrari could get from its investment in formula one.

“Once we have this clarity, I think it will be much easier to decide if we want to participate in this venture.”

But Marchionne does at least sound upbeat about the post-Bernie Ecclestone future.

“I expect that the sport in general will do better, because Liberty and Chase Carey know the entertainment world and know very well how to make F1 even more popular.

“The Scuderia will do its part in this,” he added.

© RIF | GMM