Verstappen's Manager Claims Minardi Deal is Close

Dutchman Jos Verstappen will sign for Minardi in a week - if his sponsors can provide an estimated £2 million to secure the seat alongside Briton Justin Wilson.

Verstappen, who spent the New Year skiing in Norway with World Champion Michael Schumacher, closed in on the deal when countryman Christijan Albers pulled out of the running on Tuesday.

"We are pretty close now," Verstappen's manager Huub Rothengatter revealed. "I am aiming to finish it all before the middle of January so we have just one week to go. At the moment we are negotiating the little things with sponsors and it depends on them.

"You cannot complete the deal until you have handed over the money - just ask Christijan Albers."

Verstappen is understood to have strong Dutch backing and has been top of Minardi team boss Paul Stoddart's list to partner Briton Wilson since midway through last season. The Dutchman made his Formula One debut for Benetton in Schumacher's World Championship winning year in 1994 but dropped out of the sport when German Heinz-Harald Frentzen stole his seat at Arrows last year.

But Rothengatter is cautious of the comeback and added: "It is like buying a Ferrari - you cannot go into the showroom and take the car away before the money is in the bank. We are working flat out to get that done."

Minardi have lost their title sponsorship from the Malaysian government after the tourist board decided to scale down their backing, but they are expected to name Russian company Gazprom as their new title sponsor.