F1 purchases land worth $240m for Las Vegas Grand Prix

As F1 prepares for next year’s grand prix, Liberty Media CEO Greg Maffei has unveiled a $240 million land purchase in Las Vegas.

F1 will complete a deal to buy 39 acres of land to the east of Las Vegas’ renowned Strip, where it will develop a permanent pit and paddock facilities, in the coming weeks. The investment will address the rumoured issue of the paddock being up to a mile away from the pit structures.

“Liberty Media did enter into an agreement to acquire 39 acres east of The Strip to lock in circuit design and quick capacity for the pit and paddock, among other hospitality and race support venues,” Maffei said in a call with Wall Street analysts.

“I expect that transaction will close in the second quarter and the purchase price was $240million and will be funded by cash on hand at the Formula 1 Group level.”

When asked what more investments may be made in the Las Vegas Formula One track, Maffei responded: “We don’t have any other financial detail to release yet on what else will be spent on that site.”

Maffei praised F1’s sustained momentum in the US ahead of this weekend’s first Miami Grand Prix, but added that because F1 is co-promoting the Las Vegas race, more capital and operations investment will be required to get the facility race-ready.

“As we have noted before, that will be a night race down The Strip and notably, and differently to most places, Formula 1 and Liberty Media are self-promoting the race in partnership with local stakeholders and Live Nation,” Maffei explained.

“The build-out for this track will require increased cap-ex and op-ex to develop. It’s too early to provide you with numbers, but we intend to update you later this year.”