Formula 1 legend Eddie Jordan has slammed a "ridiculous" and "preposterous" investment into racing team Alpine which includes Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney.
Wrexham co-owners Reynolds and McElhenney are part of a group which will take up a 24 per cent equity stake Alpine. The British-based French team, whose parent company is Renault, announced on Monday that the pair of Hollywood-turned-football stars will join forces with Otro Capital and RedBird Capital Partners in a huge €200million (£171m) deal.
Jordan isn't convinced about the investment, though, expressing deep scepticism to GB News. "I don't believe it," the Irish icon remarked. "First of all, I won't use the word fake news, but I mean, there's absolutely no way from an accounting point of view - the financial model doesn't stack up. That's number one.
"It's all very nice and very sexy to put these figures on things but they need to be supported and they need to be authorised. I noticed that there hasn't been any reaction from Alpine or indeed from Renault which is a major shareholder. And I find that in itself kind of strange to value something of that level at a gross value of £700m pounds. It's preposterous. It's ridiculous.
"The two people you mentioned [Reynolds and McElhenney], hugely big stars and a huge addition particularly for the American market, which is probably where Renault was trying to look forward to. They're not probably putting a lot of their own money into this. I would say that the real people behind it in the States who have taken this investment, they're using these two stars.
"Formula One is going through the roof and in terms of the sport, I think it's behind football of course, but there's actually only 10 franchises, whereas in football you've got 30 to 40 in each country throughout the world. So you multiply all of that out and then ask yourself, what is the value of having something in a niche market like Formula One?"
Despite his assertion that Alpine hadn't commented, the team revealed the news in an official press release.
Later in his interview, Jordan continued to question the news, asking: "Why is the team not called Renault? Are they hiding behind something?"
Have your say! Do you agree with Eddie Jordan and his scepticism? Join the debate in the comments section.
' Deadpool ' actor Reynolds is leading Maximum Effort Investments, with co-investors including McElhenney and fellow Hollywood A-lister Michael B. Jordan, who also owns a stake in Premier League club Bournemouth.
It may well not be the last time we see Reynolds investing outside of football, as in April the Ottawa Sun reported that he's leading a group which plans to submit a £795m bid to purchase the city's National Hockey League team, the Ottawa Senators.
Don't worry, though, Wrexham fans, as the Canadian is in it for the long haul when it comes to the Welsh side. Reynolds recently told the Fearless in Devotion podcast: "Everything we've done since we've come in is to ensure no matter who comes in - and hopefully it's us for the rest of our lives - we are building a sustainable business. Whatever that might mean in the future, who's to say?
