JULY 9, 2017

Liberty should buy Silverstone says Brown

Silverstone could come to regret axing its long-term British grand prix contract.

Silverstone could come to regret axing its long-term British grand prix contract.

That is the warning of Red Bull boss Christian Horner, mere hours before the circuit-owning British Racing Drivers' Club (BRDC) is tipped to exercise a break clause in its current race deal.

Reports say the BRDC is breaking the Bernie Ecclestone-negotiated contract in the hope of renegotiating the escalating annual fee with F1's new owners Liberty Media.

"There has been an element of mismanagement or poor negotiating originally if they have a sell-out and still lose money," Horner told the Daily Mail.

And he warned that cancelling the contract could be the next big mistake made by the BRDC.

"I'm sure Liberty would love to see a London grand prix, so the BRDC need to be careful what they wish for.

"If they pull out and try to renegotiate, it's a high-risk strategy as there are other venues queuing up for a race," Horner added.

But according to McLaren executive Zak Brown, Liberty could be musing another strategy.

"I think they should buy it (Silverstone)," he told the Telegraph, "much like the NFL -- they own the Super Bowl.

"The nice thing about Liberty is that you can share your views and they take them on board and you see them register," Brown, a renowned F1 marketing expert, added.

(GMM)