Formula 1 commercial manager Bernie Ecclestone says the sport is not for sale following reports that Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. is in talks over acquiring control of grand prix racing.
"It's rubbish," Ecclestone told Britain's Telegraph Sport newspaper. "The sport is not for sale."
The UK's Sky News service reported on Tuesday evening that News Corp. had been in preliminary talks over the purchase of F1, with Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim also linked to the deal by forming a consortium with News Corp. The networks said the talks were at an "embryonic" stage.
The report also says that News Corp. could "decide not to attempt to acquire a direct stake in F1 but instead bid for the broadcast rights." According to the Reuters news agency, News Corp. has had no contact with F1's current owner CVC so far. The private equity firm purchased SLEC – Formula 1's holding company – back in 2006.