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Ecclestone Set to Promote British GP

Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone could promote next year's British Grand Prix himself as part of a deal with teams to keep the race on the calendar.

Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone could promote next year's British Grand Prix himself as part of a deal with teams to keep the race on the calendar.

"It's a suggestion that has been made," said Alex Hooton, chief executive of the British Racing Drivers' Club (BRDC) that owns Silverstone circuit.

"It was made within the context of the team principals' meeting but we have no direct confirmation," he told Reuters on Thursday. "We are still waiting for a formal approach.

"The devil is in the detail," he added when asked about the proposal. "But it is something which has a lot of merit on the surface. We will certainly have a constructive and very energetic look at it."

British Sports Minister Richard Caborn had no hesitation in hailing a deal.

"I particularly welcome Bernie Ecclestone's FOM organisation and all the F1 teams' decision to run the extra races that have allowed Silverstone on to the 2005 calendar and his decision to take on the promotion of the British Grand Prix next year," he said in a statement.

Ecclestone holds the rights to the British event, after previous promoters Interpublic paid his Formula One Administration (FOA) $93 million to end their contract, but has said he would not promote it.

The Briton announced last month that the race, which has been a fixture on the calendar since the first Championship in 1950, was off after setting an end of September deadline for any other would-be promoters to come forward.

Reduced Payment

The BRDC's own offer failed to satisfy his demands. But a meeting between nine of the 10 teams and Ecclestone on Tuesday seemed to save the July 3 race as well as the French Grand Prix which was also threatened.

The teams accepted a reduced payment from Ecclestone for attending the 'extra' British and French Grands Prix after a voluntary agreement among them to cut costs by halving the amount of testing next year.

Teams are obliged to attend no more than 17 races without compensation and were paid extra for an 18th this year. Next year's calendar is bigger than ever.

Champions Ferrari did not attend the meeting but team head Jean Todt said last month that he would have no objections to racing in Britain and France if all the others were in favour.

"The one solid thing that has come out of this is that nine of the 10 teams have agreed a mechanism whereby there can be 19 races next year," said Hooton. "That creates a credible platform to negotiate a deal for the British Grand Prix and removes one caveat - that you could do a deal and still not get on the calendar."

Caborn said Silverstone and the British motor racing industry could now look forward to the future.

"We are now determined through the partnership of the British Racing Drivers' Club, local authorities and the development agencies to not just make the necessary circuit improvements but build the world's best high performance motor sport industry cluster too," he said.

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