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American-Mexican businessman Tavo Hellmund has revealed that he was in talks with Honda and Mercedes in relation to a partnership with Manor before his bid to takeover the team fell through.
Manor entered administration at the start of the year and failed to find an investor, resulting in a complete collapse of the team. The deal that Hellmund had in mind resembled the current pact Haas have with Ferrari.
“We were looking to form a partnership with one of the big manufacturers, Mercedes or Honda,” Hellmund said. “We had conversations with both. That way you can get motors — discounted motors — and get a driver. It’s almost like being a Triple-A [baseball] team.
"The first go-round, we were even going to involve Anthony Hamilton, Lewis’ dad. We made two stabs at it. We offered £22 million a year and a half ago. It’s a shame those people are now out of work."
Fergal Walsh
Grand Prix of Belgium
G. Zhou
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Replies (5)
Login to replycalle.itw
Posts: 8,527
Its a pity that Manor couldnt be saved, could've been a good base for a more serious entry, but maybe its for the best. I just hope we'll have a tight grid this year, but I think it'll be divided into 3 groups: Merc' vs Red Bull vs Ferrari, and then Williams vs Force India vs McLaren vs Toro Rosso, and then Haas vs Renault vs Sauber. If we'll have a backmarker next year I suspect it'll either be Sauber or Haas, and I lean more towards Sauber being the unlucky one, the decision to not have a 2017 engine will probably cost them.
f1fan0101
Posts: 1,804
Maybe someone could take over the Manor HQ and take a place on the grid by 2021? Unlikely but it would be good, it depends on what Liberty Media introduce
calle.itw
Posts: 8,527
Yeah, that'd be nice. Would love to see more competitive teams, preferably works teams. One good thing is that Liberty's F1 already seems more attractive for new potential works teams, though this could just be the initial response. We'll have to see what thats worth in a few years.
f1fan0101
Posts: 1,804
Someone like VW, although I think they'd put one of their companies in there.. Bugatti or Audi maybe
calle.itw
Posts: 8,527
Yeah, would be nice to see VW back in F1, and I agree that they'd probably put one of their other companies in the sport. Could be those two, could also be Lamborghini or Porsche. The two has history in F1, and Porsche had great success as McLaren's works partner. Or maybe they'd go in under the VW brand.