McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown sent a letter to FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem this week asking the governing body to tighten Formula 1's restrictions on common ownership across teams. The letter, confirmed by Brown on Wednesday, arrives as four of the grid's ten teams now share at least one institutional investor or affiliated owner, a concentration that did not exist when the current Concorde Agreement was signed in 2021.
Brown's concern is procedural, not philosophical. Formula 1's rules permit passive minority stakes across teams but prohibit operational influence or board representation that could blur competitive boundaries. The line has become harder to police. Aston Martin took a $150 million investment from Saudi Aramco in late 2024, giving the oil giant a stake in a team whose title sponsor is also Aramco. Alpine's parent Renault has fielded acquisition interest from entities already invested in other paddock operations, according to three people familiar with the process. Meanwhile, LVMH executive Flavio Briatore now advises Alpine's sporting strategy while maintaining relationships with multiple grid investors. Brown's letter does not name teams but cites "increasing overlap" as the trigger.
The operational risk is information flow. Team principals and technical directors share the same suite-level hospitality areas at 23 races per year. Shared investors attend the same board meetings, review the same aero development budgets, and hear the same driver contract negotiations. Brown's argument, refined since he first raised the issue in 2024, is that the FIA lacks the audit infrastructure to verify where information stops and influence begins. He is asking for bright-line rules: no investor may hold more than 10% in a second team, and no individual may serve in an operational role at one team while holding equity in another. The current threshold is 20%, set when private equity was considered a stabilizing force, not a consolidation vector.
The timing matters for two reasons. First, Formula 1's next Concorde Agreement cycle begins in 2026, and ownership structures locked in now will define the grid for another eight years. Second, the FIA is already managing a related conflict: the governing body's recent decision to allow Andretti Global's entry bid to proceed to commercial negotiations with Formula One Management, a move that requires the existing ten teams to approve revenue dilution. Brown's letter creates leverage. If the FIA tightens ownership rules, it signals to prospective buyers that each team slot is distinct and protected. If it does not, Brown has a public record of concern that insulates McLaren from accusations of hypocrisy should the team itself take on a new investor.
Watch for three events. The FIA's World Motor Sport Council meets in Paris on March 14, and ownership governance is on the provisional agenda. Alpine's sale process, advised by Raine Group, is expected to surface a shortlist by late March, and buyer identities will clarify which investors are willing to divest conflicting stakes. Finally, the next Concorde negotiating session is scheduled for the Monaco Grand Prix weekend in late May, where team principals will pressure Formula One Management CEO Stefano Domenicali to codify ownership limits before the 2026 agreement is finalized.
Brown is not arguing for divestment. He is arguing for documentation. The letter is less a complaint than a pre-positioning move, ensuring that if a rival team's investor later appears in McLaren's sponsor pipeline or data room, there is a regulatory framework to manage it. The signal is in the paper trail, not the ask.
The takeaway
Brown's FIA letter targets rising investor overlap across **four** teams, seeking **10%** cross-ownership cap ahead of 2026 Concorde talks and Alpine's **March** sale shortlist.
mclaren racingfiateam ownershipconcorde agreementalpine salezak brown
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