Actor: Thank you.

"what are you looking for?"

"F1 team".

"What convoy?"

"F1 team".

"What F1?"

Zhang Yuan: …

On the banks of the Seine, Zhang Yuan felt as if he had met Grandma Ma Dongmei.

Yang Ziqiong didn't understand even after he said it five or six times. She kept asking blankly, her eyes filled with surprise.

"So you mean you want to buy an F1 team?"

"You mean Formula 1, the world's Formula One racing team?"

Yang Ziqiong looked at him as if he were a fool.

"Yes." But Zhang Yuan still wore an extremely serious expression.

"Wow, that's a really bold idea of ​​yours," my older sister said, shaking her head.

"You know how much it costs... No, there are no Chinese people involved, no, this sport..."

My older sister revised her words several times, but she still didn't know how to explain it to Zhang Yuan.

Isn't that silly kid?

She didn't know whether Zhang Yuan was foolish or brave.

But this idea is indeed far-fetched.

Regardless of how much money it costs, is this sport designed for people of our skin color?
What kind of circle is that?
Not to mention Chinese people, even Americans face discrimination in the F1 world.

That's the territory of the old European nobility!

In fact, this sport is European horse racing, a modern extension of equestrian sports.

Yang Ziqiong thought to herself, "It's not that I look down on you, but I know you've been doing quite well these past few years and have made a lot of money."

Let alone you, even our Malaysian Yang family can't afford this sport!
He even bought a racing team... He's usually so shrewd, but turns out he's so clueless?

It seems he's an amateur, doesn't understand anything, and just does it on a whim.

But Yang Ziqiong couldn't exactly curse him out; she couldn't refute him or say he was stupid or unrealistic.

We need to consider each other's feelings.

After some thought, I had no choice but to offer my own suggestions.

"If you're interested in this sport, I can help you get a visit to the F1 paddock."

"You can even contact the team and have them show you around, or take you for a lap on the track."

"Buying a racing team is very difficult."

"Is that so..." Zhang Yuan feigned disappointment.

He actually knew it was impossible!

I never even considered buying it.

He deliberately spoke with an air of superiority, making a foolish gesture as if he was about to rush in, all to pretend he didn't understand.

There are advantages to showing weakness, because the highest predators always appear as prey.

2009 was a very special year.

Because the previous year was 2008.

This may sound like a pointless statement, but the impact of the 08 financial crisis went far beyond just the financial sector!
The sports world has also encountered turbulent waves.

"You are a senior, with much experience and knowledge, I will listen to you."

"Can you really help me get introduced to this circle?"

"Of course," Yang Ziqiong replied with absolute confidence.

"That's great! I can't wait!" Zhang Yuan exclaimed with immense excitement.

"It's currently the winter break, there are no matches, so I can't arrange for you to watch a game."

"However, if you'd like, I'd like to introduce you to someone."

That is, my boyfriend.

Zhang Yuan clapped his hands in his mind, thinking, "This is exactly what I've been waiting for!"

The two then left the restaurant and headed to the hotel restaurant where Yang Ziqiong was staying.

After we sat down, my older sister made a phone call.

Before long, a short, stout, hook-nosed, potato-shaped middle-aged white man appeared in front of Zhang Yuan with a smile.

Yang Ziqiong is in Paris for vacation.

But you can't go on vacation alone.

She came with her boyfriend.

Yang Ziqiong was married before. Her ex-husband was Dickson Poon of the Poon family in Hong Kong, a famous watch tycoon and fast-moving consumer goods tycoon.

Her subsequent romantic history was also quite rich.

Finally, and most recently, is the one standing before us.

"Todd, this is Zhang."

"Hello, Mr. Todd, it's an honor to meet you." Zhang Yuan stood up and shook hands with the other man: "I've seen you on TV before, it's a pleasure to meet you."

"Hello, my friend, please have a seat."

The Frenchman smiled and invited him to sit down and chat.

We ordered a set meal, and after the appetizers and wine were served, we started chatting.

Soon after, Yang Ziqiong brought up what Zhang Yuan had mentioned earlier.

“Todd, Zhang just told me that he wants to buy an F1 team to play with.”

"Hahahaha..." The Frenchman burst into laughter.

"My Chinese friends, F1 is a serious sport and is not something that can be easily bought or sold."

"Moreover, this is the most expensive sport in the world, and each team is an astronomical asset."

"Furthermore, F1 is the most cutting-edge system in the entire motorsport system. Without decades of experience, it is difficult to even hold an important position in any team."

"It's too difficult, too complicated."

"Excuse my frankness, but it's not something that laymen can access."

The Frenchman thought to himself, "How much money do you, a Chinese actor, have?"

Even Gong Li and Chen Long couldn't handle this kind of job.

"What a pity, I happen to have some spare cash that I'd like to invest wisely," Zhang Yuan said regretfully.

"Excuse me, may I ask how much spare money you're referring to?" Todd asked jokingly, wiping his mouth.

He planned to tell Zhang Yuan that even millions, or even tens of millions, of Chinese yuan wouldn't be enough to build a complete race car.

He wouldn't even bother explaining things to ordinary people.

However, he plans to give his girlfriend's friend some advice and treat it as making friends.

“This spare money…” Zhang Yuan paused deliberately, “I can’t tell you the exact amount, please forgive me.”

"But what I can say is that I have more than £1000 million in certificates of deposit at Barclays."

Ok?
The Frenchman was stunned when he heard the number.

It was an order of magnitude larger than he had imagined.

He glanced at Yang Ziqiong.

Yang Ziqiong raised her eyebrows.

I can't come!

My older sister was also shocked; she hadn't expected Zhang Yuan to have so much money.

This was the money he received after asking Boss Chen to help him mortgage his shares in Huayi.

"you sure?"

“If you need, I can show you the deposit slip, but it will take some time,” Zhang Yuan replied honestly.

"No, no, no, that would be too rude. I didn't mean to doubt you," Todd quickly waved his hand.

“I mean, if you have more than £1000 million…and it just happens to be at Barclays, right?”

“Yes.” He nodded.

"That's quite a coincidence."

"If I had that much money, I might not be able to buy a racing team, but it would be possible to make an investment."

"Could you tell me more about it?" Zhang Yuan asked, resting his hands on the table in a curious manner.

The other party then started chatting...

In fact, Zhang Yuan already knew what he was going to say, and even understood it better than he did!

Throughout F1's decades-long history, there have been countless legendary teams and drivers.

Amazing people emerge everywhere; many can no longer be described as human. The more you learn about a sport, the more you realize that some humans are practically two different species from ordinary people.

The same applies to basketball, football, and table tennis.

But among these countless legends, there is one team that can be described as magical.

This team only existed for one year.

But in just one year, they won both the team and driver championships in the 2009 F1 Grand Prix!
It seems like this team exists solely to win the championship, and then they'll just leave once they've won.

Behind this seemingly glorious and magical story lies a story of hardship and an inevitable coincidence.

Honda is a world-renowned automobile manufacturer.

In 2005, they bought the BAR team and started racing under the name Honda F1 team in 2006.

British American Tobacco is the same British American company.

In her early years, Gong Li was often seen in the F1 team warehouses because her husband was a senior executive at British American Tobacco in Asia.

Sports and entertainment are inseparable. Just like the locker room for football and the sidelines of the basketball court, the F1 garage is also a stage for all kinds of celebrities to perform.

This isn't Honda's first time in F1; to be precise, it's their third time competing in this highest level of motorsport.

Honda is known among Japanese companies for its high performance, and its motorsport division has long been involved in various motorsports events.

Therefore, Honda is jokingly referred to in China as "buying an engine and getting a car for free," because Honda's racing engines have truly had a glorious past.

The result was ambitious but a complete mess.

The result of entering F1 this time was not good, finishing last for three consecutive years.

After the 08 financial crisis, Honda headquarters faced a sharp drop in sales and cash flow difficulties, and planned to increase revenue and reduce expenditure.

This falls on the racing department.

Finally, at the end of 08, he made the decision to withdraw from F1!

Because in the 08 season alone, the Honda Group spent £4 million on the research and development and operation of the team.

Now I understand why Zhang Yuan said he wanted to buy a racing team; Yang Ziqiong was dumbfounded, while Todd laughed.

These days, the lowest exchange rate for the British pound is 1:10. That's equivalent to Honda burning through 40 billion Chinese yuan a year playing Formula 1!

It is evident that its cost is terrifying.

Because of this excessive spending, the sport almost died out.

The 08 financial crisis led to a downturn in the sports market, which resulted in the introduction of the racing budget cap.

Regardless of the size of the fleet, the annual budget cap is fixed, and unrestrained investment is not allowed.

This gave the small convoy the opportunity to enter.

But with no budget cap in sight, Honda was worried and decided to quit.

Island people are known for their "stubborn spirit".

I'm quitting now!

Even though there were still more than 700 employees in the factory, and the resignation severance alone would amount to more than 100 to 200 million pounds, they decided to leave.

At this point, Ross Brawn, the team's chief technical officer, stepped forward.

Just like Mr. Lao She wrote in "Teahouse".

"I love the Qing Dynasty, but I'm afraid it will be finished."

Ross Brawn also said, "I love F1, but I'm afraid it's over."

So he volunteered to represent the team in negotiations to find potential buyers.

We can't let hundreds of employees lose their jobs; these people have families to support.

After searching around, I couldn't find a single reliable person, and I even encountered a Russian scammer.

Because the financial crisis was still ongoing, everyone was short of money.

They couldn't find it no matter how hard they looked, and Honda was adamant about withdrawing; they had no choice but to withdraw.

Finally, Ross Brawn gritted his teeth and said, "No way, I'll buy this team!"
After discussions, Honda agreed to the request and sold the team to Ross Brown for "£1".

This £1 coin has since been kept at Honda's headquarters in Japan, where it was even specially made into a glass case to reflect light.

The coin silently tells the story of that former racing team.

You think it's over with just one pound?

They still have to pay £9000 million.

It wasn't Ross Brown who gave it to Honda, it was Honda who gave it to him!
Used to pay employee severance pay.

This means that Honda not only gave away the team for free, but also lost £9000 million.

This is not enough!

Ross Brown mortgaged his own property, family business, team assets, and factory to raise £8000 million and laid off half of the team's staff, barely managing to stay afloat until the start of the season.

This is the origin of the legendary "Brown GP" team.

Ross Brawn truly loved the team. He gave severance pay to the departing employees, and after selling the team to a major manufacturer a year later, he recruited most of them back to work for his old employer.

He does things in a very honest and upright manner.

The car that Zhang Yuanmao boarded was this very car fleet that is now in dire straits.

He sought out Yang Ziqiong so that she could introduce him to her boyfriend, a Frenchman named Jean Todt.

Yang Ziqiong's later access to so many Hollywood resources is inextricably linked to her current boyfriend, who later became her husband.

Because Jean Todt was French, but also a Jewish man.

And he was one of the top figures among the old Jews.

In the early 21st century, the Formula 1 racing scene was known as the Red Dynasty.

Because the Ferrari F1 team, which had been dormant for many years, has finally made a triumphant return.

The three greatest contributors were known as the "Three Musketeers of the Red Dynasty," and coincidentally, Ferrari's logo is a black prancing horse.

The three people are Michael Schumacher, nicknamed the "King of Cars," team manager Jean Todt, and chief technical officer Ross Brawn.

Just like a good movie, it needs a good director, good actors, and a good screenwriter; all three are essential. If any one of them is missing, the movie is doomed.

These three are a German, a Frenchman, and an Englishman.

Q: How to make Ferrari, the Italian national team, win the championship?

A: Senior executives should avoid employing people with irrational attitudes.

So the short Frenchman sitting in front of Zhang Yuan is a close friend of the Brawn MX team, someone who has "fought alongside him."

Together they created something glorious.

They not only fought together, but also "suffered gunfire" together.

Ferrari is jokingly referred to as an Italian state-owned enterprise.

Besides being Italy's most famous brand, the company's style is also very similar to that of some state-owned enterprises in China.

"Look at the three of you, so capable..." a group of Italian executives thought to themselves.

It's fine if they keep winning.

Once they start losing, the Italian pineapple pizza flag gets really into action.

In any sport, you can win, but you can't win all the time.

This is why Chinese table tennis is implementing a "wolf-raising" plan.

If you always win, nobody will watch the game.

After Ferrari won for four consecutive years, F1 viewership plummeted.

All car enthusiasts, even Ferrari fans, are too lazy to watch the race.

I know you'll win without even looking, so why would I bother looking?

Therefore, the F1 association dealt a severe blow to Ferrari from the perspective of technical regulations, crippling their strengths in technical aspects.

Therefore, the team started losing, and the Italians started complaining.

These aren't our old-fashioned Italians, can they manage?

People from other families cannot be trusted.

Ultimately, the trio that created the glorious empire were forced out of the company by Ferrari itself.

Does it have that state-owned enterprise vibe?

Therefore, these three people had a very good personal relationship and often got together to criticize Ferrari.

Ferrari's arrogance is world-renowned; they're the kind of company that blacklists customers from time to time.

When Zhang Yuan mentioned that he had tens of millions of pounds and that he was working at Barclays Bank, he immediately thought of his good friend Ross Brown.

My brother is so poor lately, he's practically selling his underwear.

Moreover, Barclays Bank was the British bank that provided collateral for the Brawn FC team.

What a coincidence! I was just worried about not having anyone to teach me, and then this sticky rice cake fell from the sky.

What's the current situation with the Brawn GP team?
He bought 16 engines from Mercedes to assemble a car, and now he owes £800 million and still can't pay.

Mercedes was particularly polite.

"It's okay, I understand. Everyone has difficult times."

"Don't be in a hurry, take your time."

Are Germans really that good?
In fact, Mercedes-Benz also had its eye on this fleet.

And the following year they took over Brawn GP, ​​becoming the Mercedes-Benz team, and in the next ten years they won 8 Constructors' Championships and 7 Drivers' Championships.

After Mercedes bought the team, they kept Ross Brawn on to help the team mature.

Brawn was also very particular, inviting racing legend Schumacher to return to the sport for the second time to help Mercedes lay the foundation for the team.

The moment the news broke that the racing legend was making a comeback and joining the Mercedes-Benz team, the stock price of Daimler Group, the parent company of Mercedes-Benz, surged several times, hitting the daily limit, and the company made a fortune on the spot.

Even winning the F1 championship makes it difficult for a car brand to increase sales because it's too high-end and too far removed from everyday driving.

Even if they don't win, just by showing up and occasionally achieving good results, they can boost their stock price in the European and American markets.

Many businesses appear to be losing money, but they can double their profits in the financial markets.

So the Brawn GP team is sandwiched between two of the world's top car brands: Honda in front and Mercedes behind.

"Buying a racing team is unlikely if you're willing to do so."

“But investing money to become a shareholder is possible,” Todd said to Zhang Yuan after some thought.

What I'm waiting for is your words.

Buying the Brawn GP team now is equivalent to buying the Mercedes team.

The Brawn GP team was valued at less than £1 million, but the Mercedes team in later years had a paper value of £40 to £50 billion!
The Lakers and Warriors are valued at only this much.

This is still a valuation; if you really want to buy, the price will be at least 3 to 5 times higher.

And because of its excellent performance, Daimler Group is not selling it.

This is just the increase in the value of the fleet.

As with most competitions, the prize pool is distributed based on rankings.

With so many championships, the prize money alone is huge every year, a sure-fire way to make money.

Mercedes-Benz's shareholder dividends over 24 years totaled $1.2 million.

It is an absolutely world-class quality asset.

However, what Zhang Yuan valued most was not money.

It's not about connections in the F1 paddock!

F1 is a business.

Behind the Ferrari team is the Italian Agnelli family.

Their family also owns Juventus.

Zhu Zhu suddenly became famous overseas after dating a young man from the Agnelli family.

Despite being a notorious gambler and womanizer, and an outsider in his family, Zhu Zhu still received a wealth of high-end fashion resources and exposure.

The reason why Lisa dates the son of the LVMH Group and goes on Crazy Horse is the same.

Behind the Renault team are the Pinault family and Kering Group from France.

It's Gucci's parent company.

Behind Mercedes-Benz is the Daimler family.

Geely's CEO, Shu Fu, later bought nearly 3% of Daimler Group's shares, but the F1 team remained a non-sale asset, preventing him from acquiring it.

Shu Fu also wanted to buy the Aston Martin team and had dealings with Renault, but they wouldn't sell.

Therefore, as long as Zhang Yuan acquires it, he can make a huge profit by selling it to Brother Shufu later.

The McLaren team was later sold to CYVN, the Abu Dhabi investment company.

Middle Eastern oil tycoons were also there.

The Arab sovereign wealth fund, on the other hand, directly invested in the F1 project.

It's all about money and business; it's all about the world's largest families and corporations.

Zhang Yuan spent so much money because he wanted to buy himself a way out... (End of Chapter)