FORUMula1.com - F1 Forum

[Jabberwocky]

especially as prodrive do not have to worry about the Scooby WRC effort

[7UpJordan]

That would be freakin awesome if this happened!!!!

Ditto, and if they still get to use the car Honda had been designing since the start of the year, Bourdais might have a pretty good car to throw around. Let's hope that Brawn stays on and Fry goes.

[McLaren Fan]

That would be freakin awesome if this happened!!!!

Ditto, and if they still get to use the car Honda had been designing since the start of the year, Bourdais might have a pretty good car to throw around. Let's hope that Brawn stays on and Fry goes.

And the chassis does not get the Honda engine it has been designed around, it will be a repeat of McLaren's nightmare from 1992 onwards.

[darwin dali]

F1live:
[...]
"It's totally false," the spokesman for Peugeot Sport Jean-Claude Lefebvre, who was involved with the marque's most recent F1 project, is quoted as saying by La Gazzetta dello Sport.

He played down the suggestion that PSA is able to consider entering F1 at this time because it is being less affected by the global financial crisis.

Lefebvre said: "We are having big problems with sales, just like all the manufacturers.
We have other things to think about other than considering going to F1."

La Gazzetta dello Sport said David Richards, believed to be backed by Arab money, as well as the GP2 team ART's Nicolas Todt, have also considered buying Honda.

[Jabberwocky]

Nick Todt so another good ferrari link for Honda as well as Brawn. Perhaps Honda will be renamed the Ferrari Retirement Team. Rubens, Brawn, Ferrari Engines, Maybe Massa 2010 when Alonso takes his seat.

[darwin dali]

Nick Todt so another good ferrari link for Honda as well as Brawn. Perhaps Honda will be renamed the Ferrari Retirement Team. Rubens, Brawn, Ferrari Engines, Maybe Massa 2010 when Alonso takes his seat.

hey shhhh! Don't give them any ideas!

[Gaz]

[thepitstop]

I hope they find a buyer soon, because i want Jenson to stay in F1 for the 2009 season
Before Honda pulled out, I would love to have seen Bruno Senna take the other seat at Honda
I suppose his chances of entering F1in 2009 are out aswell now

[McLaren Fan]

The radio silence we've had more or less since the announcement indicates that things are either going very well or very badly. There is either some hard negotiating going on between the prospective buyers etc. or nobody can meet the terms or is interested any longer.

[darwin dali]

The radio silence we've had more or less since the announcement indicates that things are either going very well or very badly. There is either some hard negotiating going on between the prospective buyers etc. or nobody can meet the terms or is interested any longer.

Did you check FM and AM and CB as well?

[McLaren Fan]

The radio silence we've had more or less since the announcement indicates that things are either going very well or very badly. There is either some hard negotiating going on between the prospective buyers etc. or nobody can meet the terms or is interested any longer.

Did you check FM and AM and CB as well?

Get your coat, D.D.

[EwanM]

Honda to reveal details of buyer search

By Jonathan Noble Friday, December 19th 2008, 15:14 GMT


Honda Racing are expected to reveal details about the progress of their search for a new buyer for the team in the new year, having confirmed that there has been a 'high level' of interest in the Brackley-based outfit.

CEO Nick Fry and team principal Ross Brawn have been working flat out to find a new owner since Honda's shock announcement earlier this month that they were withdrawing from F1.

It is understood that there have been discussions with various interested parties regarding a takeover of the team.

The outcome of the talks depend not only on the financial terms of a deal, but future management and organisational plans too.

No firm details of who the interested parties are have been revealed, but the state of discussions has left Fry optimistic that the team can go public with developments after the Christmas period.

"We have had a high level of interest in the team since Honda Motor Co. announced their withdrawal from Formula One," Fry told autosport.com.

"Since that time, Ross and I have been engaged in ongoing discussions with several serious potential new owners who have expressed an interest in purchasing the team."

Fry had said in the immediate wake of Honda's exit announcement that there needed to be serious interest from buyers by Christmas if they were to have a realistic chance of starting the season in Australia.

The fact that discussions with buyers are at an advanced stage is a cause for optimism, and Fry has confirmed that work is ongoing with the team's new car - the first to be created under the leadership of Brawn.

"Work on the development and build of our 2009 car continues during the next few weeks to ensure that our objective of being on the grid at Melbourne at the end of March will be achieved," he explained.

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/72543

[EwanM]

Also to be random I passed both of PSA's major car factories in the summer

[Denthúl]

Some good news. I really hope this happens. Under Richards, BAR were becoming a strong team, but when he was ditched and Fry was put in charge by the Honda management, things started to go downhill. Hopefully, with the changes that Brawn has made to the technical team, he can put the team back on track:

Richards considering Honda rescue deal

By Jonathan Noble Sunday, December 21st 2008, 11:04 GMT

Prodrive boss David Richards has flown to the Middle East for discussions about a potential rescue deal for the Honda Racing Formula One team.

Richards has been pondering whether to get involved in a buy-out of Honda in the wake of the Japanese car manufacturer's decision to pull out of F1.

And although he has made no secret of the fact that he is interested in a return to F1 management, having had spells at Benetton and BAR, he has vowed only to come back if the circumstances are right.

This is why he is now holding talks with investors in the Middle East who want to bankroll an effort. The Kuwait-based Investment Dar Company (TID) are shareholders in his Prodrive company.

Speaking to the Mail on Sunday, Richards said: "There are a group of people in the Middle East who want to support a Formula One entry for me and have been very specific about it for a year now. But we have to agree when the timing is right."

Honda Racing CEO Nick Fry said on Friday that he expected news of the progress being made to find a team buyer to be made public in the New Year - although Richards admitted that any deal he was involved in would need careful thinking before talks could progress.

"When you sit down in the cold light of day and realise the liability you would be taking on, and the huge restructuring of staff and resources that will be needed, investors will have to think long and hard before taking a punt," explained Richards.

"You will have to bridge a big gap in finance, probably for three years, before balancing the accounts."

The Mail on Sunday reports that other interested parties in Honda include Greek shipping tycoon Achilleas Kallakis and Force India boss Vijay Mallya.

Richards' ambitions for F1 have also been given a fresh impetus by the decision of Subaru to withdraw their Prodrive-run team from the World Rally Championship.

"It affects about 20 per cent of our business, but we are financially sound and have a talented, nimble organisation with a strong automotive arm looking at future technologies," added Richards.

"Sentiment and perception about the relevance of motorsport has changed in six weeks with the dramatic economic downturn. I have not ruled out getting back into Formula One, it's something I am very interested to do.

"But the big question remains: Is it too big a challenge at this moment in time? That's what I need to determine."

[7UpJordan]

I wouldn't be surprised if the withdrawal of Prodrive Subaru from WRC was in order for Dave Richards to launch his Honda rescue bid.