Fry feeling confident

Honda F1 boss says they are talking to a dozen prospective buyers

Last updated: 8th January 2009   Subscribe to RSS Feed

Fry feeling confident

Fry: Confident

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Honda F1 CEO Nick Fry has said he is feeling increasingly confident that a buyer can be found for the team.

Following Honda's shock decision to withdraw from the sport in December, Fry and team principal Ross Brawn have been talking with prospective new owners.

In the immediate wake of Honda's announcement, Fry announced that interest had been expressed in taking over the Brackley-based outfit.

And, five weeks on, Fry is more optimistic than ever that a deal can be arranged that will see the team on the grid this coming season.

"Right at the start of this process (F1 supremo) Bernie Ecclestone said he was 100 per cent confident we'd be on the grid in Melbourne," Fry told autosport.com.

"I have to say I wasn't quite so sure where his confidence came from.

"But as we've gone through this process my confidence, based on what we've seen, has increased.

"Maybe not to 100 per cent, but it's pretty close, and it has been very gratifying."

Fry said he and Brawn are also in discussions with Honda about which of the offers would be in their best interests.

"It's looking very positive at the moment," he said.

"We had, as you might expect, a huge amount of interest at the start - probably well in excess of 30 groups came to us.

"We have narrowed that down to something in the region of a dozen, and we're currently talking to Honda about what is the best bet for the future."

Long term

Fry also maintained that any investor coming on board must be prepared to buy into the sport for the long term.

"Many of the potential owners have been kind enough to talk about this as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, to get something which does have the chance to do very well in the next couple of years," he added.

"In this economic environment it is difficult, there is no doubt about it, and we've got to be careful that we look not just at 2009, which frankly is the least of our worries.

"It really is making sure we have a long-term future for the staff.

"Neither Ross nor I want to stand there and say that everything is fine if, in one or two years' time, we fall flat on our face again.

"So we are really looking towards a two, three, five-year plan for the team."

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