Flavio Briatore was born on the 12th April 1950, in Verzuolo, Italy. He is a businessman, best known for his involvement in Formula One motor racing, holding the position of manager of Renault F1 from January, 2002 until September, 2009. Previously, he held the same function in Benetton. Thus, Formula 1 became the main source of Flavio Briatore’s net worth.
So just how rich is Flavio Briatore? It has been estimated by sources that the outright size of his wealth is as much as $150 million, mostly accumulated during his career with Benetton and in motor racing overall during a span of more than 40 years.
Flavio Briatore Net Worth $150 Million
From an early age Flavio worked as a ski instructor and in restaurant management, and failed ownerships. In the early 1970s he worked in Italy’s stock market; and at that time he met Luciano Benetton, the founder of the Benetton clothing company, becoming friends and later business partners. When Benetton opened its first four stores in USA in 1979, Briatore was the director for operations. Thanks to Flavio the chain achieved impressive growth and great popularity, such that by 1989, there were eight hundred stores in the USA, as a result adding huge sums to Briatore’s net worth. The number of stores eventually stabilized at two hundred, that caused Briatore to lose interest in that business.
However, when Benetton purchased the Toleman racing team, Briatore became commercial director of the Benetton Formula One team. He quickly renewed the team staff, and managed to hire the young driver Michael Schumacher, who won races in 1992 and 1993, before winning the world championship for Benetton in the 1994 and 1995 seasons. Briatore became sports director of the Benetton team in 1996, but that year Michael Schumacher together with a large group of engineers went to Ferrari. Then, Briatore bought part of the Minardi team in 1996 with the intention of selling it to British American Tobacco, but the business was unsuccessful and he had to resell to Giancarlo Minardi and Gabriele Rumi. In 1997, Benetton hired David Richards, withdrawing Briatore.
Still, another successful step was made in 2000 when Renault acquired the Benetton team and Briatore appeared as the CEO. As a team principal, he achieved the first pole in Malaysia and the first victory in Hungary in the hands of Fernando Alonso in 2003. In 2004 his greatest success would win the pole with Jarno Trulli in Monaco and end the season as the third team of the constructors’ championship. His last major successes have so far come in the seasons 2005 and 2006, achieving two consecutive world titles with the team and driver Fernando Alonso.
Briatore was also the agent of several F1 drivers, including Fernando Alonso and Mark Webber. To add more, he is an executive member of the Formula One Teams Association FOTA. However, int September 2009, the FIA penalised for Briatore on charges of race-fixing a decision subsequently overturned by in January 2010 by the Tribunal de Grande Instance of Paris – the mateer was eventually settled out of court, but Briatore resigned from Renault, and no longer participated in Formula One, instead concentrating on various other business interests; one involved a takeover of English football club Queens Park Rangers, but Briatore relinquished his position following the racing allegations.
Finally, in the personal life of the businessman, he was in the relationship with supermodel Heidi Klum, during which she gave birth to their daughter. However, the couple split up, and in 2008, Flavio married the model Elisabetta Gregoraci, and they have a son.
