Eleven years after China became a stop in the Formula One motor racing calendar, the country now wants to become the racing championship's owner, a media report said.
According to a Sky News report on Friday, China Media Capital (CMC) is leading a group of Chinese firms to back a $8.5 billion takeover bid for the sport.
The group of Chinese media investors are willing to invest roughly $1.5 billion in the offer being assembled by Stephen Ross, owner of the Miami Dolphins, a professional American football team, reported Xinhua citing Sky News.
The proposed takeover of F1, which remains far from certain to take place, still requires roughly $2 billion in additional equity from other investors.
The takeover proposal from the consortium which involves CMC comes at a difficult time for F1, with a number of teams succumbing to or facing financial difficulties and lingering concerns about the quality of the sporting spectacle.
One uncertainty facing the sport is the outcome of a complaint submitted recently by two of the smaller teams - Force India and Sauber - to the European Commission about the way prize money is distributed.