- 06 Feb 08, 18:05#31788
Ayrton Senna: WDC 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991
McLaren: WCC 1974, 1984, 1985, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1998, 1999, 2007
McLaren: WDC 1974, 1976, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1998, 1999, 2008
From autosport.com:
By Jonathan Noble Wednesday, February 6th 2008, 10:21 GMT
Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone insists he will have 'no sentiment' over dropping the British Grand Prix from the calendar, as he warns that time is running out for Silverstone to secure a new deal.
Although the Northamptonshire-track expressed hope about its future on Tuesday when it revealed it had received local authority approval for a much talked-about revamp, Ecclestone has said that there are more hurdles to overcome yet before its future is sorted.
Speaking to The Daily Telegraph, Ecclestone said that the commercial aspects of a new deal were far from settled - and that if he was not happy with what was on offer then the 2009 British GP would be the last.
"Assume the facilities are built and we like it. The next problem is the commercial agreement for us [the grand prix] to be there," Ecclestone said.
"This has not been discussed other than the guy [from the BRDC] who came to see me some time ago saying there is no way we [BRDC] could pay you even what we have paid you in the past.
"So there are two things to overcome. First they need to build the facilities, and then they need to pay the market rate. There is no sentiment in this from my point of view.
"I want [from the BRDC] only what we do in any other country, no more, no less. I sincerely hope they are in a position to deliver what they know they have to carry out to get the grand prix in 2010."
He added: "What other countries would normally do is enter into a commercial agreement.
"We would want a letter of credit to cover two years' fees. They would then need to build a facility in the way we would want it built. If they didn't build it for whatever reason, they would lose their two-year fee."
The matter looks even more complicated, however, with sources suggesting that the local authority approval for Silverstone's redevelopment was only given on the condition that Ecclestone guaranteed the future of the race.
Hmm. The last paragraph really does complicate things even more than what we thought. I'm still not convinced that Ecclestone will really pull the plug on the British Grand Prix, especially with Lewis Hamilton as 'Formula One's rising star'. To be honest, however, I think that's one of the problems. There are still a lot of people who don't think Ecclestone will pull the plug, particularly so since he was meant to several years back and didn't. From my own point of view, as I've said before, there is more to just money in sport. Britain is on of the countries with which you associate motor racing and Silverstone has a certain charm about it (like Spa), so it should be given some lee-way. Let's face it, to Ecclestone ten million is loose change. If he wasn't so greedy, he would see the value of Grands Prix like Britain etc.
By Jonathan Noble Wednesday, February 6th 2008, 10:21 GMT
Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone insists he will have 'no sentiment' over dropping the British Grand Prix from the calendar, as he warns that time is running out for Silverstone to secure a new deal.
Although the Northamptonshire-track expressed hope about its future on Tuesday when it revealed it had received local authority approval for a much talked-about revamp, Ecclestone has said that there are more hurdles to overcome yet before its future is sorted.
Speaking to The Daily Telegraph, Ecclestone said that the commercial aspects of a new deal were far from settled - and that if he was not happy with what was on offer then the 2009 British GP would be the last.
"Assume the facilities are built and we like it. The next problem is the commercial agreement for us [the grand prix] to be there," Ecclestone said.
"This has not been discussed other than the guy [from the BRDC] who came to see me some time ago saying there is no way we [BRDC] could pay you even what we have paid you in the past.
"So there are two things to overcome. First they need to build the facilities, and then they need to pay the market rate. There is no sentiment in this from my point of view.
"I want [from the BRDC] only what we do in any other country, no more, no less. I sincerely hope they are in a position to deliver what they know they have to carry out to get the grand prix in 2010."
He added: "What other countries would normally do is enter into a commercial agreement.
"We would want a letter of credit to cover two years' fees. They would then need to build a facility in the way we would want it built. If they didn't build it for whatever reason, they would lose their two-year fee."
The matter looks even more complicated, however, with sources suggesting that the local authority approval for Silverstone's redevelopment was only given on the condition that Ecclestone guaranteed the future of the race.
Hmm. The last paragraph really does complicate things even more than what we thought. I'm still not convinced that Ecclestone will really pull the plug on the British Grand Prix, especially with Lewis Hamilton as 'Formula One's rising star'. To be honest, however, I think that's one of the problems. There are still a lot of people who don't think Ecclestone will pull the plug, particularly so since he was meant to several years back and didn't. From my own point of view, as I've said before, there is more to just money in sport. Britain is on of the countries with which you associate motor racing and Silverstone has a certain charm about it (like Spa), so it should be given some lee-way. Let's face it, to Ecclestone ten million is loose change. If he wasn't so greedy, he would see the value of Grands Prix like Britain etc.
Ayrton Senna: WDC 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991
McLaren: WCC 1974, 1984, 1985, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1998, 1999, 2007
McLaren: WDC 1974, 1976, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1998, 1999, 2008
