After winning everything there is to in the world of F1, Lewis Hamilton started fulfilling personal goals. One of them was to become a team owner and he fulfilled it with his investment in NFL’s Denver Broncos. However, the Briton wanted to diversify his portfolio. Rumor had it the 7x F1 champion wanted to buy the MotoGP’s Gresini Racing, but the Italian outfit is reportedly rejecting Hamilton’s bid.
According to Crash.net, Gresini Racing is not for sale despite Hamilton’s recent interest which he even addressed during the British GP weekend. Nadia Padovani, Fausto Gresini’s (founder) widow, changed her mind at the last moment.
This is because of Liberty Media’s recent involvement in the sport. After the American company took over F1 in 2017, the sport witnessed massive growth with teams enjoying commercial success unlike anything before. Their values too, increased by hundreds of millions of dollars.
“With the advent of Liberty Media you want to hold onto your slot a little longer to see if it goes stratospheric,” said TNT Sports’ Gavin Emmett and suggested, “Maybe they will take investment or something like that. But it sounds like she’s not up for selling.”
Lewis Hamilton speaking about potentially buying Gresini Racing at Silverstone today #MotoGP pic.twitter.com/bwe07bqqkh
— Crash MotoGP (@crash_motogp) July 4, 2024
After becoming part owner of an NFL franchise, Hamilton wanted to delve into the world of Moto GP. However, he will lose out on this opportunity with Gresini Racing. With an exciting future ahead for the series, Padovani is seemingly holding out.
The Liberty Media impact that is blocking Lewis Hamilton’s dream
With Liberty Media set to acquire Moto GP by the end of 2024, a huge growth in its popularity is widely expected. This would also be a financial turnaround for certain teams who are in dire need of some cash injection.
MotoGP has been long revered by racing enthusiasts across the globe, including F1 stars. The high speeds on bikes and the high level of competition make for an enthralling watch.
However, it has been unable to gather everyone’s attention as strongly as F1 has. Now, whether Liberty Media does change that and give Moto GP the platform it deserves remains to be seen.
If they do, teams like Gresini Racing will become highly valued, and it is a risk Padovani is willing to take. Hamilton, unfortunately, will be left with empty hands on this front. That is unless another team decides to onboard the F1 legend.
