Sauber in No Rush to Choose Engine

The Swiss outfit found themselves at the centre of the early season rumour-mill when rival team boss Frank Williams revealed to journalists that BMW motorsport director Mario Theissen had informed him that the German car manufacturer had decided to supply Sauber with customer engines in 2006.

And with further speculation suggesting that BMW could go even further and buy into the Sauber team, team boss Peter Sauber found himself hounded throughout the Australian Grand Prix weekend.

But with the story appearing to have died down for the time being, Sauber has made it clear that there is no rush for him to make a final decision - and he has yet to completely rule out sticking with current partner Ferrari.

"Nothing has changed," he said when asked about the latest on the team's engine supply situation. "We are basically in touch with all the engine makers, but mainly with BMW, Toyota and Ferrari. I would not expect any decision within the next two weeks."

The remote possibility of the team continuing with Ferrari could be the reason why Sauber has recently withdrawn his public backing for team letters critical of the Italian team's testing stance - although it is still most likely that he will conclude a deal with BMW.