It seems that there may be some activity surrounding what remains of the defunct Manor team. Most of the team’s assets were already auctioned off last month, but there may still be a party interested in using Manor as a foundation.
According to reports, a group of Chinese-based companies has been eyeballing the former Manor Racing, looking to have the team ready for a Formula One entry for 2018 at the earliest. Multiple employees from the current teams on the grid have been contacted by the interested party, trying to scope out talented personnel for the team.
Christian Horner confirmed that Red Bull employees have been contacted by the interested party. He confirmed this to Auto Motor und Sport.
Based on the situation that the sport was in last year, you would never expect new teams to actually express an interest in joining Formula One. However, the new Liberty Media ownership seems to have sparked some interest, as there is believed to be a minimum of ten parties looking for an entry into Formula One.
What’s holding them back? The financial structure of the sport. The current financial structure between the sport and teams does not favour new teams, which may prevent any new teams from making their way into Formula One.
The current rules regarding cash distribution is locked by a contract until 2020, after which point new terms will be negotiated that could give new or struggling teams more access to winnings and other cash from the sport.
