Racing
© Jonathan Borba
BYD has confirmed it is exploring a Formula 1 entry, but multiple reports indicate the Chinese automaker remains at an early fact-finding stage and faces steep obstacles whether it tries to buy its way onto the grid or join as a 12th team.
The scale of that challenge is what stands out. The two routes that would give BYD real control, acquiring an existing operation or creating its own team, both look difficult in a market where teams are not selling and Formula 1 has only just moved to admit Cadillac-GM as team number 11 after a lengthy process.
According to Motorsport, several investment funds and one major automotive group have recently made offers worth more than $2 billion for teams and still been turned away. The same report described the current climate as a seller's market, with no appetite to cash out while valuations are expected to keep rising.
A fresh expansion bid does not look much easier. Motorsport reported that paddock insiders in Montreal believe the timing for a 12th team does not look right yet, even though the rules allow the grid to grow to 12 entries. The series is still dealing with the commercial and logistical impact of adding an 11th team, with venues such as Monaco and Montreal already tight for space and any further expansion likely to raise the anti-dilution fee again.
BYD has not hidden its interest. Stella Li, BYD executive vice-president and CEO for the Americas, Europe, and the Middle East, said the company has already been speaking to Formula 1 leadership. “We are always in close contact,” Li said. “I like Formula 1 because it’s about passion and culture, and people dream of being in Formula 1.” She added that BYD is discussing a place on the grid to “put our technology to the test.”
PlanetF1.com reported that Li recently confirmed conversations with F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali in Shanghai, while Motorsport said she was due to attend the Monaco Grand Prix for further meetings with F1 executives. Even so, Motorsport said those talks were still “in a very early fact-finding stage” and “far removed from any decisions” on BYD’s next move.
There are easier ways for BYD to gain a Formula 1 presence. The reporting points to options such as title sponsorship or a Sauber-style branding arrangement, but those would fall short of the kind of full control associated with BYD's stated ambition to establish its own team.
Even if the financial side is manageable, there is another question over fit. Formula 1's engine direction is shifting again, with the championship discussing a future move back toward a more combustion-heavy formula, while BYD ended production of pure internal-combustion engines nearly five years ago to focus on electric and hybrid technology. That leaves any long-term F1 project needing not just a slot on the grid, but a convincing technical path as well.
For now, BYD's interest is real and public, but the barriers around ownership, expansion and regulation leave a Chinese-backed Formula 1 team looking more like a serious possibility for the future than an imminent addition to the grid.