The Weight of a Cost Cap

 

Once upon a time, Formula 1 was where billionaires went to lose money and gain ulcers.

 

Now? It’s a billion-dollar membership scheme with carbon-fibre initiation rites and Liberty-branded champagne.

 

From the smoke-filled paddocks of the 1990s to Netflix-polished showbiz, F1 has swapped oil stains for balance sheets.

 

Here’s how the world’s fastest sport became the most expensive club on Earth.

◼︎ Tobacco Money and the 1990s Survival Game

 

Marlboro, Rothmans, and Mild Seven kept the grid alive. The cars smelt of nicotine and desperation; survival depended on packet sales.

 

◼︎ The Manufacturer Money Hurricane

 

Then came Mercedes, BMW, and Toyota — armed with accountants instead of mechanics. Budgets went nuclear. Privateers went extinct.

 

◼︎ The Bernie Era

 

Bernie Ecclestone, equal parts Bond villain and bookkeeper, centralised the chaos and sold it to the world.

 

By the time he cashed out, F1 was a global commodity with a single shareholder: Bernie.

 

◼︎ How Liberty Media Changed Everything

 

The Americans spotted a content goldmine. Add Netflix, hashtags, and a few Vegas fountains — suddenly F1 was fashionable.

 

◼︎ The Cost Cap Revolution

 

Financial sanity arrived, theoretically. Teams now count pennies while hiding pounds in ‘heritage projects.’

 

◼︎ F1’s Billion-Dollar Teams

 

Once playthings, now investment assets. Haas is valued at almost £1 billion; Ferrari is worth more than Aston Martin.

 

◼︎ The Closed Shop

 

Andretti & Cadillac knocked. F1 smiled politely — and bolted the door.

 

Welcome to the grid’s new reality: membership by valuation, not speed.