For sale: one F1 team
Caterham's administrators put the whole shebang up for sale as a job lot, ready to race
Bernie wants Caterham on the grid for Abu Dhabi
In a telephone conversation confirming his support for the sale Ecclestone has apparently given Caterham F1 "dispensation" to miss the US and Brazilian Grands Prix "but hoped that a new owner would be in a position to race at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix" and give him the full grid he needs to satisfy his side of the bargain. Basically Bernie needs someone to buy it, sharpish.
Smith & Williamson say they have "already been contacted by a number of interested parties expressing a wish to buy the team and they hope that a transaction with an operator of substantial financial means can be concluded in the next few weeks." They conclude by saying they would hope any buyer would secure the jobs of the Leafield team.
So there we go. If you're of suitably substantial financial means there's an F1 team up for grabs. Anyone hazard a guess at an asking price?
[Pics: LAT]
Smith & Williamson's full statement, reproduced verbatim:
Administrators from Smith & Williamson take over ownership of 1MRT in addition to acting as administrator for Caterham Sports Limited. This offers potential for a new owner of the Caterham F1 racing team to race in the current season
24 October 2014
The administrators of Caterham Sports Limited (CSL), Finbarr O'Connell and Henry Shinners of Smith & Williamson, the accountancy and investment management group, have agreed terms to acquire the share capital of 1MRT, the Malaysian company which holds the licence to participate in the Formula 1 World Championship.
On this basis the administrators now have the ability to sell the Caterham Formula 1 Team including the operations at Leafield, Oxfordshire.
"This includes the Formula 1 licence, the racing cars, the designs and intellectual property for current and future seasons plus the workforce and all of the technical support provided to the racing team by CSL from the Leafield Technical Centre," explained Henry Shinners, administrator from Smith & Williamson.
He continued: "Purchasing the assets would give the buyer ready access to F1 racing."
In a telephone conversation today between Finbarr O'Connell and Bernie Ecclestone, Mr Ecclestone agreed to support the administrators in their wish to sell the Formula 1 team to a party with the financial strength to sustain it into the future.
Mr Ecclestone also agreed to give dispensation to Caterham F1 such that it could if necessary miss the U.S. and Brazilian Grands Prix but hoped that a new owner would be in a position to race the team at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Mr Colin Kolles, the previous principal of the team offered today to hand over management control of 1MRT to the administrators. Lawyers for the administrators and Mr Kolles are currently working on the paperwork to effect this transfer.
The administrators have already been contacted by a number of interested parties expressing a wish to buy the team and they hope that a transaction with an operator of substantial financial means can be concluded in the next few weeks.
It is hoped that any purchaser of the F1 team will take over the employees and that they will be able to recommence their work including that at the Leafield site
Said Finbarr O'Connell: "We believe this arrangement gives us a much better chance of being able to reach a better conclusion for the racing team and its creditors.
"While this is a great step forward in making the whole team and assets more attractive, there is no need for the staff of 1MRT to return to the Oxford site in Leafield until a sale of the Formula 1 team occurs.
"This is a difficult situation which is not of our making. We regret any personal impact on 1MRT's employees. As administrators for CSL, we are seeking to maximise the outcome for its creditors and other stakeholders."
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