Mansell Involved in Campaign to Save British GP

Former World Champion Nigel Mansell has revealed he is heavily involved in a campaign to save the British Grand Prix.

The 1992 World Champion is heading a consortium which aims to reach a deal with Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone so the Silverstone race is included on the 2005 calendar after Ecclestone announced it would be axed.

But Mansell said he was confident the race would be saved.

"There will be a major announcement on this matter very shortly â€" and all I can say before then is that there has been an exciting development that I am very proud to be part of," Mansell told the Sun.

"It will mark a very important step forward and everyone involved believes that it could mean Grand Prix racing continuing in this country â€" which of course it must as the birthplace of the sport.

"The final details of the package are being pored over by our legal team and once they give us the go-ahead, we will go public."

Formula One's commercial supremo Ecclestone, who said last week that the race at Silverstone would be cancelled because the British Racing Drivers' Club would not meet his asking price for the promotional rights, confirmed talks were continuing.

"[Sports minister] Richard Caborn has been in contact with me and is doing his best to keep the race in this country," he told Thursday's edition of the Daily Mail.

"He has asked me to meet the BRDC halfway and I have done so. I would prefer to sign a seven-year agreement because we don't want this nonsense of a question mark about the event every couple of years or so but it's up to the BRDC."

The provisional calendar will be presented to the governing FIA for ratification at a meeting in Paris next Wednesday.