Chase Carey, the chief executive of the Formula One Group, the new owner of the sport, has explicitly criticised the previous administration of Formula One, managed by Bernie Ecclestone on behalf of CVC Capital.
Carey was speaking at the FIA sport conference being held this week in Geneva and made it clear his organisation was addressing the shortcomings it had inherited.
He was also particularly critical of the previous management that he believed had served Formula One poorly.
“This sport has been underserved by a perpetual, short-term, deal of the day focus and one that has lacked a strategy, vision and longer-term plan, and a willingness to invest,” he said.
CVC, a private equity firm, had owned F1 since 2006, until it was bought by Liberty Media (now known as the Formula One Group) in January this year. During the period under CVC’s control Ecclestone secured lucrative TV deals but faced criticism over the increasingly high prices of hosting races and expensive tickets.
Ecclestone was replaced by Carey within a week of the takeover and although given the role of chairman emeritus, has been removed from the decision-making process. In Geneva Carey confirmed this had been the first move in a long-term restructuring of F1.
“The sport didn’t have an organisation before,” he said. “Bernie, to his credit, was a one-man show with financial and legal support. One of the things we have done is put an organisation in place that can support the sport and we will have the key people in by August.”
The Formula One Group has made considerable commitments to change the sport itself, including the appointment of Ross Brawn as the sporting director. Externally, progress has appeared slow with few concrete changes yet to emerge but Carey is confident in advances being made behind the scenes.
“Priority one for us is still to make the sport and the competition on the track as exciting and engaging as it possibly can be,” he said.
“Just the nature of what we do on the track – whether it’s rules, engines, costs – take time. We’ve had meetings on what is the next generation engine … That engine isn’t going to get implemented in three months but it doesn’t mean we haven’t had multiple meetings.”
The FIA is holding the conference in Geneva to allow delegates from its 150 member nations to meet and exchange information, a goal that has been championed by its president, Jean Todt. Thus far in his negotiations with Carey he has been impressed. “We have had no conflict. They arrived humble, willing to learn, understand, participate and to work closely with the governing body. Which is important.”
