The parent company of motor racing publications Autorsport and motorsport.com is set to become Formula E’s latest shareholder, according to a report from Sky News. [Update: story confirmed by motorsport.com]

Motorsport Network has expanded rapidly in the past 12 months, with its recent acquisition of Autosport and associated Haymarket titles announced while Formula E was in Hong Kong in October 2016. The acquisition shook the racing world and has positioned the group particularly strongly when it comes to motorsport news.

In the Formula E paddock, motorsport.com and Autosport have been among a very small handful of publications to send journalists to Formula E races since season one.

Sky News understands that MN ‎Network, which recently bought F1 Racing and other automotive titles from Lord Heseltine’s media group Haymarket, is acquiring the Formula E shareholding in a deal to be announced later this weekend.

MN is minority-owned by Zak Brown, a senior motorsport executive who was recently appointed to head McLaren’s F1 and other racing operations.

It was unclear on Saturday what valuation the MN stake purchase would attribute to Formula E.

The series’ biggest shareholders are the sister media companies, Liberty Global and Discovery Communications, which took a one-third stake in Formula E in 2015 for about $55m.

Other investors include Qualcomm, through its venture-capital arm Qualcomm Ventures, and Amura Capital, a private equity fund.

MN is purchasing its shares from a Russian minority investor, according to insiders.

Neither Formula E nor Mr Brown could be reached for comment on Saturday.

skynews.com