Sale of A1 Grand Prix series is on the starting grid

Revving up interest: project managers David Hampson, left, and Will Hancock

11 April 2012

Up for sale to one rich buyer: 20 Ferraris, 14 Lola race cars, a Maserati track safety car and the license to run A1 Grand Prix, a rival to Formula One racing, which has collapsed into administration.

Majority-owned by Mayfair hedge fund RAB Capital, A1 GP billed itself as the "World Cup of Motorsport" when it was launched by a Dubai sheikh in 2003.

The first series saw teams from around the world including New Zealand, India, Britain and Brazil compete worldwide.

National teams bought the franchise to run an A1 car from the management team, including South African tycoon Tony Teixeira.

But now A1 Holdings Limited, the company which owns the intellectual property rights to the A1 Grand Prix brand, has entered liquidation and A1 Grand Prix Operations Limited, the Cavendish Place-based firm which owns the racing cars, is in administration.

The collapse came about after creditors petitioned for the business to be wound up in court.

RAB Capital's investment was part of its Special Situations fund, which entirely wrote down its investment in A1 Grand Prix a year before its collapse.

Griffins, the administrator, and liquidator Bridge Business Recovery, have appointed David Hampson and Will Hancock of GoIndustry DoveBid as project managers to sell both companies' assets in a private treaty sale in an attempt to keep the race series alive.

Tim Bramston, a partner with Griffins, said several high-profile buyers were interested in acquiring the package, and said he expected to line up a sale in the next few weeks.

Bramston said: "We took the step of administration to secure the assets and reunite the Ferrari-powered cars with the intellectual property rights to use the brand.

"The vehicles have now been laid out for inspection and discussions are already underway with a number of interested parties."

Another source close to A1 added: "At its peak at around 2007, A1 was getting 100,000 people to races in Holland, and was shown on television in 66 countries with audiences of about 20 million.

"There is definitely interest in a racing series which is a cheaper winter season version of Formula 1."

It is thought RAB won't be bidding, but other shareholders will.