22/01/2015
NEWS STORY
For the Leafield outfit and its rival Marussia, the last few months have been an emotional roller-coaster. To put it mildly.
Both teams went to the wall at about the same time. However, as one made it to the final race of the season following the success of its crowd-funding project, the other appeared doomed missing the final three rounds.
As the clock continued ticking, there was some relief when the FIA revealed that in order to allow one (or both) to run, special dispensation would be given allowing them to run their 2014 cars.
Now, amidst talk that Marussia might yet be saved at the eleventh hour, it is Caterham which appears to be running out of time, though Finbarr O'Connell, of administrators Smith & Williamson, hasn't given up hope.
"I am still hopeful," he told Reuters. "As long as there are people who have got a real possibility of doing something, I'm not going to close it down. Because if I do, then I will just be organising an auction as regards the assets... which I can do at any stage anyway.
"I've had people visiting the site," he revealed. "Some people are trying to find a way to make it work for them. We will do anything we can to make it happen, but it's really in the hands of the prospective purchasers.
"I'm very conscious that a time will come when it will not make sense for anybody to invest large sums of money in racing the Caterham team for the 2015 season," he admitted. "Time will just run out.
"I'm not going to stifle any interest," he insisted, "but time is definitely running out."
Earlier this week, an auction which would have killed off any hope of Marussia being saved was cancelled (postponed) at the eleventh hour, leading to talk of a serious buyer stepping in to save the Banbury-based outfit.
Only yesterday, Bernie Ecclestone said that while he believed Marussia might yet be saved the future for its Leafield rivals looked bleak.
"I had a meeting with someone this morning that said they want to, and think they can buy Marussia, so that would be good," he told Sky Sports News.
"Caterham; I don't think there is much chance of saving them," he added, "but Marussia there is a chance. Maybe within ten days I think we will be able to say whether it is going to happen or not."
However, the F1 supremo warned that if Marussia is saved he doesn't want it on the grid merely to make up the numbers.
"We don't want someone who is just going to limp on, that is just want we don't want," he said. "We went through this whole saga at the end of last year and we don't want to go through it again."
Chris Balfe