Mercedes could soon sign the new Concorde Agreements

All Formula 1 teams, except Mercedes, have signed the new Concorde Agreements, which bind them to Formula 1 until 2020, with revised financial agreements, particularly regarding additional payments related to television rights.

Until now, Scuderia Ferrari was the only team to receive preferential treatment due to its history in Formula 1 and its presence since the creation of the World Championship. But this will change with these new agreements, as the team from Maranello will no longer be the only one to receive bonuses.

Indeed, any team present in Formula 1 since 2000 that has not changed its name could receive a financial bonus, as well as teams that have already won constructors’ titles in the past or have won the constructors’ championship two years in a row.

With a possible initial public offering, the major teams – Ferrari, McLaren, and Red Bull – could be offered a seat on the board of directors of the company that manages Formula 1, Delta Topco.

This possibility would have annoyed Mercedes, which has decided to play the waiting game so far regarding its signing of these new agreements. Nick Fry, one of the leaders of the Mercedes AMG team, however, acknowledged to Autosport before the Spanish Grand Prix that Mercedes wanted to continue its F1 adventure: « The mindset is very clear: Mercedes-Benz wants to be in F1. I must also say that F1 needs Mercedes-Benz. It is one of the 20 largest brands in the world and one of the few car manufacturers present in F1; it is an engine supplier that equips three teams. Mercedes can attract brands such as Starwood Hotels, a large American company that makes its decisions very seriously, and I think that Mercedes wants to be in F1. »

Fry even estimated that in the event of an IPO, the absence of Mercedes could be detrimental to the value of Formula 1: « F1 would clearly be weaker if Mercedes were not part of it, and I am absolutely convinced that if CVC wants to sell all or part of F1, the value they can derive from it will certainly be diminished if Mercedes no longer participates (in the F1 World Championship). »

Bernie Ecclestone, head of FOM, and the Mercedes executives met this weekend in Barcelona, and things could change if we are to believe the Briton. The head of commercial rights told Bild am Sonntag in Barcelona that he was confident on the matter: “We are now at 80%. Regarding the remaining 20%, we will get there soon. We have discussed with several Mercedes executives. I am convinced that we will still see Mercedes in Formula 1.”

The British magnate also confided to Pitpass that the German manufacturer might also be granted a seat on the F1 board: « Mercedes will sign the new agreements. Everything will be fine. We will see if Mercedes will have a seat on the board. I had a meeting with Dieter Zetsche (the head of Daimler) this weekend in Barcelona. He agreed with this idea but still needs to sort things out with his board on everything we discussed. »

If Bernie Ecclestone has been quite talkative in Spain, this is not the case on Mercedes’s side, as explained by Norbert Haug, vice-president of Mercedes-Benz Motorsport: « I must apologize, but I do not want to provide any information at the moment regarding the state of negotiations. »

Finally, Mercedes could therefore obtain a seat on the board of directors of the company that manages F1, like Red Bull Racing, Ferrari, and McLaren. The Austrian team should be represented by the boss of Red Bull, Dietrich Mateschitz, if this is confirmed. In any case, this is what the interested party told the Salzburger Nachrichten, also adding that he could sit alongside the Ferrari boss: « If that is the case (that Red Bull has a seat on the board), I would go myself. And I suppose for Ferrari it will be Luca di Montezemolo in person. But it’s still in the negotiation phase. »