Stoddart lodges 2008 entry, Minardi to return?.
Despite the grief and heartache that he endured while at the helm of Minardi, Paul Stoddart's appetite for Formula One remains undimmed, following confirmation that he has lodged an entry for the 2008 campaign.
Having seen Minardi swallowed up by the Red Bull corporation, and its name changed to Scuderia Toro Rosso for 2006, Stoddart admitted that he could revive the Italian marque under the European Minardi F1 banner when grand prix racing enters its brave new world in two years' time.
Despite the grief and heartache that he endured while at the helm of Minardi, Paul Stoddart's appetite for Formula One remains undimmed, following confirmation that he has lodged an entry for the 2008 campaign.
Having seen Minardi swallowed up by the Red Bull corporation, and its name changed to Scuderia Toro Rosso for 2006, Stoddart admitted that he could revive the Italian marque under the European Minardi F1 banner when grand prix racing enters its brave new world in two years' time.
Stoddart confessed his longing for an F1 return to Reuters in the run up to this weekend's Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne and, while many may claim it to be a publicity stunt, the outspoken airline entrepreneur - who was recently forced to cut back on his OzJet initiative - insists that he is keen to secure the final slot on the 2008 grid, despite being aware that he faces stiff competition from rumoured opponents such as Prodrive and GP2 team ART Grand Prix.
Having sold Minardi's factory and 2005 car design to Red Bull in advance of STR's entry, Stoddart is expected to revert to his European Aviation company's base in England to run the team, as well as falling back on previous season's Minardis to form the basis of his entry.
"I've lodged myself an entry as European Minardi F1 Limited," he confirmed, "We are in a better position than anyone, other than a current F1 team, to compete. We've got the [PS04B] cars that we ran in Melbourne last year, we've got the team and we've got the facility, so we'll see what happens. It might not happen, but I miss F1 too badly at the moment."
FIA president Max Mosley stipulated a 31 March deadline for entries for 2008 in an attempt to get the five remaining rebel manufacturers to commit to the sport, even though they remain in discussion over both technical and commercial issues. The quintet - BMW, DaimlerChrysler, Renault, Honda and Toyota - duly submitted their entries en masse yesterday [Monday], effectively leaving one spot to be filled. Should Prodrive, ART and others rumoured to be interested in graduating also file entry requests by Friday, Stoddart could find himself in a scrap for the proposed twelfth grid slot.
