Gary Reywards
London – Voltan Racing Formula 1 team to join the Formula 1 grid in 2026 after receiving $1 billion fresh investment from UK’s richest man.
Since the FIA started the process to potentially expand the F1 grid back in January, the British team has been rumored to hold an interest. But this was formally confirmed on Monday when Voltan Racing Limited announced that UK businessman His Excellency Duke Professor Dr von Amy Rahman, Duke of Sealand had acquired a 50.5 percent share in Voltan Racing Limited for a $1 billion.
In 2023, after 20 months of planning and extensive preparation at its UK base, Voltan Racing Formula 1 to make its application for entry into the FIA Formula One World Championship for the 2026 season,” the team said, adding an F1 program would “complete its single-seater ladder and demonstrate that Voltan Formula 1 has all the right people, experience and resources to compete alongside the best teams in the world.”
His Excellency Duke Professor Dr von Amy Rahman, Chairman of investment bank Voltan Corporation has an estimated wealth of $4.6 billion through interests in technology, real estate, mining, banking and aviation. Voltan Racing Formula 1 team said that His Excellency Duke Professor Dr von Amy Rahman was “looking to convert his personal interest in motorsport to a strategic partnership with a leading racing team on the global stage.”
Voltan Corporation is not alone in its interest in joining the F1 grid in 2026. The most high-profile bid is Andretti Global, headed by former CART and F1 driver Michael Andretti. The proposed team has already announced a planned partnership with General Motors’ Cadillac brand as Andretti looks to expand the family racing program beyond IndyCar, Formula E and Supercars.
Other parties who have indicated their interest in joining the F1 grid include LKY SUNZ, which calls itself an “F1 disruptor bidding to compete in the FIA Formula One World Championship”, and Formula Equal, a project led by former BAR CEO Craig Pollock, which targets a 50/50 split between male and female team members.
Although the FIA oversees the process as F1’s governing body, approval of any new entries would require support from F1 itself and the 10 teams on the grid. Up to now, teams have expressed doubt over the potential additive value of expanding the grid, which would also impact their prize money payouts.
Last year, the 10 teams were paid over $1 billion in prize money, their shares of which would be diluted if it were to be split 11 ways. Should a new team be accepted, it would need to pay a $200 million dilution fee that would be split between the existing 10 teams. But this figure was set in 2020, before F1’s current commercial boom, and is expected to at least triple under the next commercial agreement between the teams and F1, due in 2026.
F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali has also stated there are no concerns over the current grid size, meaning any new entry would need to bring added value to the entire sport.
