Red Bull is the process of buying a controlling stake in the Bora-hansgrohe team, having already worked very close with it, and the linked junior development team, in recent years.
Red Bull is taking a 51 per cent cent share of the team, with German regulators releasing a competition-related notice about the deal.
The German Federal Competition Authority has published its notice of the deal and called for anyone who believes they will be unfairly impacted by the transaction to raise their concerns now.
"Entrepreneurs whose legal or economic interests are affected by the merger can bring in a written statement to the Federal Competition Authority or the Federal Cartel Prosecutor within 14 days from publication date," it said.
The regulator's notice said Red Bull GmbH, which is the corporate group behind the Red Bull global company, is buying 51 per cent of RD pro cycling GmbH & Co KG and RD Beteiligungs GmbH, which are both the holding companies of the Bora-hansgrohe World Tour team.
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Bora-hansgrohe was founded by Ralph Denk in late 2009 and he previously owned the controlling stake in the business.
The team was launched as a UCI Continental team, NetApp, for the 2010 season. It moved up to ProContinental level the following season and in 2013 became NettApp-Endura, and Bora-Argon 18 in 2015.
It moved up to World Tour level for 2017, becoming Bora-hansgrohe and signing then world champion Peter Sagan. The team has worked very closely with Red Bull in recent years, including using its Red Bull athlete performance centre in Thalgau, Austria.
Its junior development team - featuring Irish rider Patrick Casey this year - is known as 'Red Bull Junior Brothers’. Red Bull is also believed to have been heavily involved in Bora-hansgrohe's recent signing of Giro d'Italia champion, Primož Roglič, from Jumbo-Visma.
More to come.
