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General F1 Discussion / Re: Aus GP to have 5 boost straights this year instead of 4 DRS zones
« Last post by John S on March 04, 2026, 11:36:15 AM »
Which actually brings up an interesting tangent. F1 teams are worth more than ever because... F1 teams are worth more than ever (I understand economics less than I understand hybrid power units). If Aston Martin can spend a bazillion dollars and then face plant, maybe investors will wonder what they're paying for with other teams, like Alpine or Williams if they're not getting wins. Even McLaren, Audi and Ferrari answer to people who invest ungodly amounts of money for no tangible reason.
What you're missing out in your economic equation, Jeri, is many teams now make profits at the end of the year. Record payouts from Concorde and big money from sponsors set next to cost cap means most of grid can be in profit. Some like Merc, Ferrari and Red Bull very big profits, bigger teams get more Concorde payouts & much bigger sponsor money. That's the goal Papa Stroll is aiming for Aston race team.
Investors don't complain about companies who are 3rd, 4th, or even 10th in the market place if they are making profit & share value rises, or at least stays up.
Capital gains of teams are valuable too, ask the investors who bought 25% of Alpine from Renault and are now valuing that stake at 2 or 3 times the original cost - according to news about Horner's attempt to purchase same.
Add in the anti dilution fee now being at least $450m, for any new 12th entrant, even worst team on grid has a starting point well north of that for resale rather than zero.
Lifting and coasting, or sacrificing top speed in favor of harvesting during qually is not what I signed up for. WEC has done a much better job of integrating hybrid systems without handicapping the cars. Give them a battery and an ERS that charges it during normal racing. I haven't signed up for Apple yet and I continue to waffle.