The Bahrain sovereign wealth fund is now the sole owner of the McLaren Group, which has no impact on the team’s Formula 1 business, according to CEO Zak Brown
McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown emphasizes that the ownership restructuring of the parent company, the McLaren Group, will have no impact on McLaren’s Formula 1 business. At the end of 2023, it leaked out that the Bahrain sovereign wealth fund, which previously owned around 60 percent of the group, will now take full control of McLaren.
“It has no impact on the Formula 1 team,” Brown assured when asked about it in the new year. “We are fiscally very healthy – we made a profit last year for the first time in a long time and we expect that to continue.”
According to the Formula 1 team’s latest financial figures, the team posted a loss of around 57.5 million dollars in 2022, as expenses increased by 92 million dollars compared to 2021. The construction of the new wind tunnel may have had a negative impact on profits. However, the financial figures for 2023 will not be published until the end of 2024
Brown: “We are an independent company “
With the change in ownership structure, Mumtalakat, Bahrain’s sovereign wealth fund, will remain the sole remaining owner of McLaren Group as it converts the equity of minority shareholders into warrant-like instruments, according to Sky News.
Sheikh Abdulla bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, CEO of the Bahrain Sovereign Wealth Fund, said: “The announcement is testament to the careful steps taken as part of a comprehensive and long-term plan with our partners to create an optimal governance structure as the Group continues to develop and deliver the world’s most innovative and exciting supercars.”
However, the ownership structure of McLaren Racing, the company through which the Formula 1 and Formula E teams are run, will not change: “We are 70 percent owned by McLaren Group and 30 percent by MSB Sports Capital and UBS, so we are an independent company,” explains Brown.
Brown: More resources for McLaren can only be a good thing
“Of course we share a brand with McLaren Automotive. The stronger they are, the better. We work very closely together, but it’s a separate entity and what’s happening there is good news for Automotive. It gives them the resources and the commitment they need.””Similarly, their investment has given us the resources we needed to get back to where we are now – fighting for podiums, being financially sound and being able to invest in drivers like Lando and Oscar.”
“So this is all good news for us in the sense that we obviously want to see that our sister company is healthy and has the resources it needs to get back to the top,” concludes the McLaren Racing CEO.
“Similarly, their investment has given us the resources we needed to get back to where we are now – fighting for podiums, being financially healthy and being able to invest in drivers like Lando and Oscar.”
“So this is all good news for us in the sense that we obviously want to see that our sister company is healthy and has the resources it needs to get back to the top,” concludes the McLaren Racing CEO.
