NOVEMBER 9, 2001
Mateschitz confirms American team dream
Dietrich Mateschitz's claims that he is intending to create an American F1 team (an odd thing for an Austrian to be doing) have been confirmed.
The deal being discussed back in the summer was one involving Red Bull, Arrows and a US engine company. The team was talking to both Ford and General Motors. At the time Arrows boss Tom Walkinshaw got very hot under the collar about the stories but he did eventually do a deal with Ford for customer engines and Red Bull is now a major sponsor of the team. Mateschitz has even said that he is going to buy control of the team which Walkinshaw denied as well.
For the moment, however, the shape of the deal is still being formed and Mateschitz is funding Arrows and Team Cheever in the Indy Racing League. There are clearly links here with Walkinshaw as he and Cheever go back many years. Team Cheever runs the TWR-built Infiniti IRL engines. It also helps that one of the rising American youngsters at the moment in Europe is Richard Antinucci, who happens to be Eddie's nephew. We would not be surprised to hear that Arrows will name him as a test driver in the year ahead.
The 20-year-old was born in Rome but now lives in London, having spent this season competing in the British Formula Renault Championship with Manor Motorsport. He scored four wins. Antinucci hopes to be racing in the British Formula 3 series next season and so would be well-placed for a testing deal.