A High Court judge in Britain has rejected an STG85 million ($A158 million) claim against Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone from a German media company.
The judge said there had been a "corrupt" deal to facilitate the sale of Formula One's commercial rights to a preferred buyer, but the damages claim from Constantin Medien was thrown out on Thursday.
Justice Guy Newey also noted that he found it "impossible" to regard Ecclestone, 83, as a "reliable or truthful witness".
In evidence in London last year, Ecclestone was accused of entering into a "corrupt agreement" with a German banker, Gerhard Gribkowsky, to facilitate the sale of the Formula One Group.
Constantin Medien was involved in the sale in 2006 of a stake belonging to the German bank Bayern LB.
The stake was bought by private equity group CVC Capital Partners, but Constantin claimed it lost out in the deal and sought damages.
Lawyers for the media group alleged that Ecclestone and Gribkowsky made a "corrupt" arrangement in 2005.
Ecclestone has been under investigation by German authorities since Gribkowsky was convicted of taking an illegal payment when the Formula One rights were sold in the 2006 deal.
He faces a bribery trial in Germany in April related to the case.
After the ruling, Ecclestone said: "Questions were asked, I answered them and I told the truth.
"This case was about the value of some shares. It was nothing to do with whether I did or didn't tell the truth, or whether I was unreliable or not."
He said he had "no idea" whether the British judge's comments would affect any trial in Germany.
Ecclestone has reduced his role in the Formula One Group's operations pending the outcome of the trial in Germany.
