Stoddart Expects Ecclestone to Keep Minardi Stake

Paul Stoddart, team principal of Minardi, believes Formula One commercial rights holder Bernie Ecclestone will not immediately sell his stake in the team.

Ecclestone invested an estimated $4 million (USD) in Minardi on Saturday and paddock talk suggests he had already lined up a group of investors to sell on to.

But Australian Stoddart insists that he does not think that Ecclestone is out to make a profit from his investment and said: "Any shareholder can sell their shareholding but that has not been discussed with me.

"I don't believe that is the game plan. What the game plan is to see that Formula One has the stability of ten teams and ten competitive teams, and this is a great thing for the sport."

Stoddart hit out on Friday after hearing news that the proposed 'fighting fund' - which would have seen struggling Minardi handed $8 million (USD) to survive past the end of this season - was no longer being made available.

After a meeting on Saturday morning, Stoddart agreed to sell a "minority" stake in the team to Ecclestone to ease fears of the team's collapse and the reduction of the number of Grand Prix teams to nine. But BAR-Honda team principal David Richards believes Ecclestone, who once owned the now defunct Brabham team, will not have bought into Minardi to become involved as an owner again.

When asked if he thought Ecclestone was the middle man in a deal to introduce new investors to Minardi he said: "I wouldn't be surprised although I have no reason to believe it other than I can't see Bernie wanting to run a team himself for long.

"I would suspect that there is someone waiting in the wings there to purchase the team. Bernie has obviously got a plan himself. I suspect that we will find a solution for the engines and in an economic engine environment and a different set of circumstances Minardi could be a profitable venture."

Stoddart, however, believes Ecclestone's investment is a true commitment to the team and, responding to Richards' comments, he said: "I think you will find that is not correct. I think you will find this speculation will go around because I have already been asked: Am I staying on? Yes.

"I think that the events of this weekend are so significant and the association of the Ecclestone name so powerful that the lack of funds to develop this car may change for the better and I think we can do it alone."