Grapevine: Honda gear up for record attempt

The original record attempt, scheduled for last October, was forced to be postponed after the poor weather on the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah made it impossible to complete the runs.

Honda ran shakedown tests of their car at the Mojave airfield in California in November, going over the 400km/h barrier in the unofficial attempt.

But the team will now go for the official record, running on the salt flats between the 17th and 21st of July.

"Next week sees the climax of a long two-year project for the Honda Racing F1 team," said technical director Gary Savage. "We hope that the result on the Salt Flats will reflect the hard work and dedication that has been put into this project by all the team both in the UK and Japan." 

The car will be driven by South African Alan van der Merwe, and the 26-year-old admitted he could not wait.

"It's been such a long build-up so I just feel totally prepared for it," he said. "Everybody has been working so hard over the last two years and is so well prepared that I don't feel any apprehension - I just want to get out there and do it. 

"It's a good feeling to know that we are going to get on a plane next week and get it on. In fact, I wish I was on my way to Bonneville right now."

More information on the Bonneville 400 project can be found on the official website.