Minardi Can Build its Own Engine, Says Stoddart

European Minardi team owner Paul Stoddart revealed his outfit have been developing their own engine for 2002.

The Australian says he has four engine options for next season, one of which is an in-house project that will ensure the team is not left without a power unit.

"We've been developing our own engine all year and we've got a very comprehensive development programme if we wanted to go that way," said Stoddart, whose team is currently using European engines (a re-badged Cosworth).

"We do a lot of it in-house and we've taken on a lot of ex-Cosworth guys who now work for us directly. But of options one to four, that is number four, but at least it means Minardi can't be in a position where they do not have an engine."

In the mean time, Stoddart is likely to secure financial support from the Malaysian government, the country's Sports Minister revealed.

Datuk Hishammuddin Hussein said yesterday he will be meeting with Stoddart at the end of this month to discuss Malaysian partnersip with Minardi. "I'm hoping to bring local backing and effort to help Minardi and to develop motorsports in Malaysia," the Minister said.

"We can tie it up with our existing programmes in software development, go-karts etc. This isn't easy to do but I'm doing it because it's good for the long-term. After Alex [Yoong], hopefully there will be more drivers who would be able to compete at the highest level, and I'm making these efforts based on that guarantee."