Liberty Media, the parent company of Formula One, announced the offering of 10.65 million Series C Liberty Formula One common shares to raise $825 million primarily to fund the acquisition of MotoGP.
The offering, priced at $77.50 per share, will raise the capital needed to complete a $4.2 billion all-cash deal for Dorna Sports, the company that owns and operates MotoGP.
In addition to financing acquisitions, a portion of the proceeds is allocated to corporate purposes, including debt repayment.
Liberty Media also granted the underwriter, Goldman Sachs, an option to purchase an additional 1,597,500 shares.
Liberty’s acquisition of MotoGP was announced in April this year and is valued at $4.2 billion. The acquisition means an 86% stake in Dorna Sports, with the remaining 14% held by MotoGP management.
This move marks a significant step in Liberty’s strategy to expand its portfolio of live sports and entertainment assets.
Earlier this month, Liberty Media CEO Greg Maffei said on a conference call with Wall Street analysts that he expected the Dorna deal to close before the end of the year.
“The transaction is progressing smoothly,” Mapei said. “The regulatory filings are progressing smoothly.
“We have foreign investment control approvals in two jurisdictions, Italy and Spain, and more recently merger approvals in Brazil and Australia.
“We continue to expect the transaction to close by the end of the year.”
©MotoGP
Liberty’s acquisition of Dorna has inevitably led to increased speculation about a groundbreaking collaboration between F1 and MotoGP and the organisation of a double-bill race weekend.
While there are logistical hurdles – coordinating two major racing series with vastly different technical requirements and safety considerations in the same venue would be a complex task – Dorna’s longtime CEO Carmelo Ezpeletta has not ruled the idea out entirely.
Earlier this year, MotoGP bosses confirmed discussions were underway with their F1 colleague Stefano Domenicali to “study the possibility”.
Dorna is not only responsible for MotoGP. The company also holds the commercial rights to the World Superbike Championship and the electric MotoE class.
