Ecclestone: US GP future undecided

Following the farce of last year's event, where only six cars raced following tyre problems suffered by the Michelin runners, there had been worries that Indianapolis would not even want F1 back this year.

But although the 2006 event is going ahead, Ecclestone has said that nothing is certain beyond this year - especially with the track's F1 contract running out this season.

"The deal finishes this year," he said at the Autosport International Show. "For 2007, the answer at the moment is let's see."

Speaking to guests at the Sid Watkins Safety Fund Lecture, Ecclestone was asked whether he thought there would be a good turnout this year.

"What, of teams?" he joked, before admitting that he 'didn't know' how many spectators would attend the race.

Ecclestone also re-iterated his belief that there was nothing that could have been done to allow last year's race to take place with a full field, even though teams argued at the time that a simple chicane would have allowed the Michelin runners to compete.

"If they had insisted on putting in a chicane it would have been against the regulations," he said, before claiming that the sport's bosses could have been punished if anything had gone wrong after the chicane was installed.

"The circuit has got to be checked 90 days before a race. Had someone been killed then the person responsible for the changes would have been on one of those flat slabs they have in the USA and given an injection. We could not take the risk."