01/12/2007
NEWS STORY
Earlier this week, asked his opinion regarding the fact that the United States will not be hosting a round of the Formula One World Championship in 2008, Bernie Ecclestone told Formula1.com: "America is a continent as big as Europe. In order to have the same impact as in Europe we ought to have eight races over there. To have just one Grand Prix in the States does not make Formula One popular."
All very, well, but many F1 fans in the USA would be happy to have at least one home race in the meantime.
Fact is, Ecclestone tried the same sort of arm-twisting at Indy that he attempts with all circuit bosses, keen to squeeze every last penny out of them. However, in Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) boss Tony George he met his match. George refused to meet Ecclestone's demands and consequently the USA - the home of the motor car, and one of the most important markets for manufacturers such as BMW and Mercedes - drops off the F1 calendar, at least for now.
Speaking to Bloomberg however, IMS President Joie Chitwood says he is confident that F1 will return to the legendary American track, and hopes that any obstacles - read Ecclestone's demands - can be overcome.
"I think that Formula One will come back, I really do,'' said Chitwood said yesterday in an interview in New York. "There's nothing definitive but I think there has been some dialogue. It's coming up with the right plan so everybody can benefit from it.
"We've made a lot of investment in the property,'' he added. "We were disappointed when it went away. For us, the goal is to see if we can get them to come back at some point.''
While Americans will miss out on F1 in 2008, they will at least get MotoGP, which is rapidly becoming the big threat to F1 in terms of the quality of racing and its general entertainment package. While this will not be lost on Ecclestone, the F1 manufacturers have made it quite clear that they want to be back racing in the USA by 2009 at the latest.
However, the fact remains that if F1 is to return to Indianapolis, the IMS is going to have to find the cash. For Ecclestone, who is busy trying to squeeze similar amounts of cash out of other countries, and still has gullible (sorry, eager) governments out east desperate to become part of the F1 dream, is unlikely to give in.
Bernie doesn't do sentimentality.