Silverstone racing-track owners are confident they will reach an agreement with formula-one rights holder Bernie Ecclestone for a British Grand Prix next July.
The track owners, the British Racing Drivers’ Club (BRDC), must put pen to paper on a deal before Friday, when motor racing’s world governing body, the International Automobile Federation (FIA), will release the final version of next year’s calendar.
Ecclestone and the BRDC had reached an impasse over the exact breakdown of the seven-year contract. He wanted a one-year deal with an option for six further seasons while the BRDC preferred a two-year initial period.
But BRDC chairperson Alex Hooton remains optimistic those differences can be ironed out before the FIA releases the 2005 schedule.
”We’re working on a proposal that Mr Ecclestone has put to us in the last day or two. We’re working on it and we are optimistic,” Hooton told BBC Radio.
”I believe that the signs are that there will be a Silverstone next year and in succeeding years, but we’re not there yet.” — Sapa-AFP