Forest Road, Ares Billionaire Co-Founders Buy Formula E Team

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Two billionaire co-founders of Ares Management and asset manager Forest Road have purchased the ERT Formula E team, which has been rechristened Kiro Race Co. ahead of the next season of the electric race car world championship circuit.

Forest Road, a Los Angeles-based manager of some $127 million in assets, acquired all the equity of the franchise with capital from investors including Ares’ co-founders David Kaplan and Bennett Rosenthal, according to a press release Tuesday.

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The Kiro Race team was renamed two weeks ago, apparently ahead of the announcement of the acquisition and a new technical partnership with Porsche. The team was co-owned by two Chinese firms, Lisheng Sports and Gusto Engineering, both race car-focused businesses, and had raced under various names including ERT and China Racing. While the team had early success last decade on the Formula E circuit, it finished last season in last place.

A Forest Road spokesperson declined to disclosed financial terms. The Financial Times reported in March that Formula E was looking to sell a new slot on the circuit for around $27 million.

Forest Road has focused its investments around tax credits in the film and energy businesses and also has a cryptocurrency-focused fund. The business, owned by financial veterans Zachary Tarica and Idan Shani, also has an arm that advises separately managed accounts for clients that participate in venture capital and other investments, according to a March regulatory filing. The company may be best known in sports for two special purpose acquisition companies it formed with Shaquille O’Neal as special advisor.

“Formula E represents the future of motorsport—not just because it’s electric, but because it combines cutting-edge innovation with a deep commitment to sustainability,” Jeremy Tarica, brother of Zachary and Forest Road managing director, said in an email. “It’s not often that renewables and media, the core of Forest Road’s strategy, intersect in such a unique way, and we are thrilled to be a part of this momentum,” Tarica said.

Ares, meanwhile, is more familiar in the sports business, having recently become one of the private equity firms permitted to invest in NFL franchises. Kaplan and Rosenthal co-founded the asset management giant with executives including Atlanta Hawks owner Tony Ressler. Rosenthal is a co-owner of Major League Soccer’s LAFC.

Formula E recently was purchased by Liberty Global, an entity partly owned by John Malone, who also is chairman of Formula 1 owner Liberty Media. The latest season of Formula E saw a 35% rise in television viewership, according to Forest Road. Season 11 will feature 17 races, the largest slate in the league’s history. One of the teams that races in Formula E is owned by the CEO of Penske Media Corporation, which publishes Sportico.

(This story has been corrected in the fifth paragraph to note that Zachary Tarica is one of the owners of Forest Road. His brother Jeremy Tarica is the firm’s managing director.)

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