JULY 11, 2002

Pischetsrieder says no (again)

THE head of Volkswagen Bernd Pischetsrieder has again denied any intention on the part of Audi to enter Formula 1 in the near future. The German automobile executive told Autocar that F1 was too risky for his company to consider at the moment as there are too many car manufacturers involved.

Pischetsrieder said he thought that one or two of the manufacturers involved in F1 will depart unless they achieve more success.

So it seems as though Audi - which can trace its roots back to the great AutoUnion - is stuck in the backwaters of sports car and touring car racing for the immediate future - which is a curious way to go about selling more vehicles...

It should be remembered that until the Jaguar Racing announcement was made Ford bosses denied any definite plan to enter Formula 1 racing...