FEBRUARY 14, 2000

Stallone switches to CART

HOLLYWOOD film star Sylvester Stallone has given up his dreams of making a movie about Grand Prix racing and has announced plans to make a film about CART instead.

HOLLYWOOD film star Sylvester Stallone has given up his dreams of making a movie about Grand Prix racing and has announced plans to make a film about CART instead. The new film is expected to be called "Champs" and will begin filming - if all goes to plan - in June this year. Stallone will play a retired racer who has returned to the tracks to tame a wild young driver. The script sounds remarkably similar to the final plans for the F1 movie which Stallone says did not happen because "a certain individual who runs the sport had his own agenda".

Stallone bought an option from F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone to produce a film about F1 in 1997. It cost him a rumored $2m. He visited several Grands Prix with Hollywood money men and directors but failed to come up with the budget necessary and by the middle of last season the F1 authorities had lost patience with him and had given up the idea.

Whether this means there will be a film made by another producer remains to be seen. Renny Harlin has been wanting to make a film about F1 for some years.