Toro Rosso looks set to be rebranded following reports in the Spanish media that the Abu Dhabi government is to buy a majority share of the team from Dietrich Mateschitz.
Mateschitz has been looking to sell the Red Bull sister team for a couple of years now, having taken complete control after Gerhard Berger sold his shares back to the Austrian billionaire in 2008.
Spanish reports suggest Aabar Investments PJS, an investment arm of the Abu Dhabi government, have already begun their acquisition of the outfit though a recent sponsorship deal which sees Falcon, a private bank owned by Aabar, taking up significant branding on the car.
Aabar also own 30% of Mercedes GP, but it isn’t thought the team would become a Mercedes GP junior team, like it is currently for Red Bull.
AS reports that parent company to Aabar, International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC), is actually the driving force behind the deal as they recently announced a 100% takeover of Spain’s CEPSA, one of the country’s largest petroleum producers.
IPIC chief Khadem Abdulla Al Qubaisi was seen in the race paddock at both the Spanish and Monaco Grand Prix, possibly finalising the deal.
Whilst the deal may only be speculation at the moment, the facts support such a move as with further information suggesting a rebranding of the team to CEPSA is imminent and will happen before the end of the 2011 season.
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