06/05/2009
NEWS STORY
Former racer and team owner Aguri Suzuki has admitted that he is keen to return to F1, just a year after his Super Aguri team withdrew from the Formula One World Championship after running into financial problems.
With the FIA due to introduce a £40m budget cap formula in 2010, entering the sport - and being competitive - could be cheaper than it has been in decades, and Suzuki admits that despite his reservations about the sport, he once referred to it as a 'club full of piranhas', the new low-budget series appeals to him.
"If it's physically possible I would certainly like to return to Formula One," he told the Sankei Sports newspaper.
Originally set up by Honda as a means to keep Takuma Sato in F1, the team was forced to withdraw from the sport after just four rounds of the 2008 championship. The previous season, the little Leafield based outfit seriously embarrassed Honda, regularly out-performing the Japanese giant. It is this, combined with Honda's own problems, both on and off the track, that is widely thought to have led to the Japanese manufacturer withdrawing its support.
Following the news of the budget cap, USGPE, Lola and Prodrive have all been linked with 2010 entries, while Pitpass has reported that Colin Kolles, of Jordan, Midland, Spyker and Force India fame, is considering a return to F1 in partnership with Franz Hilmer of Formtech GmbH, the company that bought the Super Aguri team's assets.