REPORT: A1GP and Speedcar racing off into the sunset
In the wake of Formula One's near collapse and the shock resignation of Indy chief Tony George, it'd be all to easy to assume these are the only two racing series in serious trouble. However, emerging reports indicate that they're only the tip of the proverbial iceberg.
According to the latest, both the Speedcar and A1GP series are on the verge of total collapse. The former, for those unacquainted, is a stock car series pitting former F1 drivers like Jean Alesi, Heinz-Harald Frentzen and Jacques Villeneuve against each other on tracks around the Middle and Far East. After only two short seasons of operation, Speedcar's official website is offline and reports suggest the cars have been parked along with it.
Meanwhile, the A1GP World Cup of Motorsport, an open-wheel feeder championship between various national teams, appears to be going down the same path. Only one season after unveiling their new Ferrari-designed and -powered spec single-seaters, A1 Grand Prix Operations Ltd has reportedly declared bankruptcy and began liquidating its assets. A1 was starting to position itself as an alternative to the likes of GP2 and the new Formula 2 as a feeder series for aspiring F1 drivers, but its purported collapse will leave that territory to the mainstream series, while Speedcar's demise will leave one less sunset into which burnt-out grand prix pilots can ride off.
[Source: F1-Live]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Majarvis 8:09AM (7/03/2009)
Good riddance (especially the craptastic Speedcar series).
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AZZO45b 11:45AM (7/03/2009)
Yeah... who wants to see Ferrari "spec" cars (A1GP) when we can have an underpowered, terrible sounding, "Pinewood Derby" styled Dallara survive in the IRL. Agree with ya on Speedcar series though.
Guess the Surfers Paradise race has to look for a new OW headliner???
Galley 8:46AM (7/03/2009)
I love the concept of A1GP, but it was never televised in the U.S.
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Thameth 11:20AM (7/03/2009)
It was televised in the USA, just the last season wasn't....
summazooma 11:42AM (7/03/2009)
So, A1GP has began, er,... begun to liquidate it's assets, eh?
Any Ferrari spec open wheelers on the block?
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Redline 11:50AM (7/03/2009)
A1GP was a good idea on paper, but I could never bother to watch it.
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cm 3:22PM (7/03/2009)
Tony Teixeira interview to AutoHoje (from http://desporto.autohoje.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3833&Itemid=51 - Google translation):
"The bankruptcy of the company that manages the A1 GP 'will not affect anything in the conduct of the competition, as guarantor Tony Teixeira, the head of discipline which went up and the visas will continue to run Filipe Albuquerque, "but with the Portugal Team undergo a refurbishment.
Tony Teixeira said in the exclusive Autohoje, what is happening now was planned for seven months and that, unfortunately, is a process that will not be the best, 'because we could not do so well with the creditors who had in the past. How is not the good, the evil is done. "
Be concerned about two million dollars which allegedly should have been paid but were not ... "only that amount is still being analyzed to see if it has to be paid or not." Anyway, between the bankruptcy of a company and opening up others, nobody will be fired, ensures Teixeira, and the deployment of the new factory of the A1GP in Portimão framework of this strategy in future.
"Things will continue its normal process, as provided for in Portugal and the factory is dependent on only the approval of the competent authorities."
Tony Teixeira reinforces that 'we will do all that is needed to survive, but things are not easy. There are problems everywhere, and the world is completely different. "
It is this prospect of survival Teixeira warns that since Team Canada will continue but "have to show investors, because I can not continue to bear all alone. I am not the only Portuguese in the world ', maintains, before clarifying that the national team will undergo changes that should be given to know by the end of this month. Changes that may go by the change of leadership structure, as well as in the promotion and "marketing". "You can not lose more money and, therefore, is that some things will have to change." But one seems to be untouchable, the permanence of a pilot Filipe Albuquerque's main team. "Yes, for now, is" concluded Tony Teixeira."
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Robert Ryan 4:46PM (7/03/2009)
"Guess the Surfers Paradise race has to look for a new OW headliner???"
V8Supercars are the headliner at Surfers. Champcar and finally the IRL were support acts. There was a tug of war between V8Supercars and the Surfers organisers who did not want it a clone of the Clipsal 500.So the organizers they wanted a International Openwheler series to balance the pull of Tony Cochrane and his V8Supercars(Think NASCAR versus CART) Their is a lot of friction between them and Tony Cochrane the CEO of V8Supercars.
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Anthony 2:24AM (7/05/2009)
I think A1GP will be back next season (this off-season) no worries actually, BK is not always the signal of the end.
Speedcar is solely dependent on "Oil" money but since profits have sunk, they have to make cuts someplace... Instead of employing a bunch of ex-F1 drivers to drive old NASCAR Nextel Cup cars, they can save their money...
Stay tuned to Mid-Week Motorsports for the latest news on A1GP as the fellas are all fans of it.
Unlike Autoblog who can barely get out of park long enough to cover anything with any seriousness...
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PhillT 3:57AM (7/09/2009)
I went to see a few Speedcar races and they were great to watch. They were simple cars that spent the whole race rubbing paintwork and there was plenty of action, with some top name drivers.
It's a shame the whole thing was basically unsustainable, but from a crowd-pleasing point of view it was great fun. I'll miss it.
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